Ultrasound assisted intensification of enzyme activity and its properties: a mini-review

Over the last decade, ultrasound technique has emerged as the potential technology which shows large applications in food and biotechnology processes. Earlier, ultrasound has been employed as a method of enzyme inactivation but recently, it has been found that ultrasound does not inactivate all enzymes, particularly, under mild conditions. It has been shown that the use of ultrasonic treatment at appropriate frequencies and intensity levels can lead to enhanced enzyme activity due to favourable conformational changes in protein molecules without altering its structural integrity. The present review article gives an overview of influence of ultrasound irradiation parameters (intensity, duty cycle and frequency) and enzyme related factors (enzyme concentration, temperature and pH) on the catalytic activity of enzyme during ultrasound treatment. Also, it includes the effect of ultrasound on thermal kinetic parameters and Michaelis–Menten kinetic parameters (k_m and V_max) of enzymes. Further, in this review, the physical and chemical effects of ultrasound on enzyme have been correlated with thermodynamic parameters (enthalpy and entropy). Various techniques used for investigating the conformation changes in enzyme after sonication have been highlighted. At the end, different techniques of immobilization for ultrasound treated enzyme have been summarized.     

A quantitative cytochemical method for the demonstration of delta5,3beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase activity in unfixed tissue sections of rat ovary.

A method for the quantitative measurement of delta5,3beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase activity in unfixed tissue sections of rat ovary has been described. The method depends on the oxidation of dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) and uses nitroblue tetrazolium as the final electron acceptor. Although the dehydrogenase is not a soluble enzyme, polyvinyl alcohol is included in the reaction medium to allow the use of a high substrate concentration whilst employing a low concentration (5%) of dimethyl formamide. The enzyme is equally dependent on NAD+ or NADP+ for its activity and this activity is significantly enhanced by the presence of cyanide. The NADP+ dependence is not abolished by inhibiting nonspecific alkaline phomonoesterase. The activity of delta5,3beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase is completely dependent on a functional sulphydryl group. Furthermore, the enzyme activity is totally inhibited in the presence of a steroid substrate analogue at 10(-4) M.     

A rapid and simple spectrophotometric assay of angiotensin-converting enzyme.

A rapid, simple, and accurate method for the chemical assay of anglotensin-converting enzyme has been developed. The method relies on previously published method for spectrophotometric assay of angiotensin-converting enzyme activity and on the use of 2,4,6-trichloro-s-triazine (TT) as a colorimetric reagent of hippuric acid (N-benzoylglycine). When 3% TT in dioxane was added to the incubation medium of the angiotensin-converting enzyme after stopping the incubation by the immersion of the test tubes in a boiling-water bath, the absorbance at 382 nm increased linearly as a function of both enzyme concentration and incubation time. Neither hippuryl-l-histidyl-l-leucine (HHL, substrate for this assay system) nor histidyl-leucine was positive in color reaction with TT. Accordingly, this method does not require any procedures for separation of hippuric acid from HHL. The enzyme activity was found to be highest at pH 8.3, at chloride ion concentration of 600 mm, and at HHL concentration of 3 mm, when the 5000g supernatant fluid of the rat lung was used.     

An automated method for acetylcholinesterase kinetics

An automated assay for acetylcholinesterase (EC 3.1.1.7.) has been developed based on the manual spectrophotometric method of Ellmanet al. (1). This method was used to determine (a) the enzyme activity of an unknown sample and (b) the dependence of initial rates given by a fixed enzyme concentration on the substrate concentration. Methods to minimize possible enzyme modification by DTNB (2) are described. Finally a modification of the conventional autoanalyser procedure permitted rapid and reproducible enzyme kinetic analysis under various conditions. This helped to minimize the effects of possible enzyme inactivation at high dilutions especially when using crude enzyme preparations.     

Superoxide dismutase activity as an index of the toxic action of pesticides

A biochemical method for evaluation of the pesticide effect on the living organisms has been proposed. The key enzyme of antioxidant protection, superoxide dismutase (SOD) serves as an index of toxic influence. In the experiments with mollusks Physa, the inhibition of enzyme under the action of pesticides has been revealed. A reverse dependence between the activity of SOD and the number of perished mollusks has been revealed on the background of increased concentration of toxicant. The proposed method is delicate, simple, sufficiently informative, with the help of it the determination of permissible concentration of adverse substances considerably accelerates.     

Anomalous behaviour of cathepsin B: dependence of activity and stability on salt concentration

Effect of salt concentration on the activity and stability of cathepsin B from buffalo spleen has been investigated. Catheptic activity was maximal at a buffer concentration of 5.5 x 10(-3) M. The enzyme was, however, highly unstable at a salt concentration lower than 1.5 x 10(-2) M. The use of 0.02 M sodium phosphate buffer has been suggested for the assay of cathepsin B activity. For storage of the enzyme, however, a 0.1 M sodium phosphate or other buffer of equivalent ionic strength has been recommended.     

A rapid assay method of collagenase activity using 14C-labeled soluble collagen as substrate.

A rapid assay method for vertebrate collagenase (EC 3.4.24.3) activity has been developed using 14C-labeled soluble collagen as substrate. The method is based on the incubation of collagen with enzyme in the presence of glucose to prevent collagen fibril formation followed by selective extraction of the enzyme digestion products into dioxane at a final concentration of 50%. The rate of reaction was about 10 times higher than that obtained by the conventional method using reconstituted collagen fibrils as substrate and the relationship between enzyme activity and concentration was linear over a wider range. When the method was applied to the assay of human granulocyte collagenase, the results showed good correlation with those obtained by the conventional gel method.     

Viscometric method for assaying of total endodepolymerase activity of pectinases

An improved method for assaying of the total endodepolymerase activity of pectinases has been developed. The method is based on the determination of the viscosity of a citrus pectin solution in the presence of the enzyme using an Ostwald viscometer. The depolymerizing activity of different pectinases can be detected including polygalacturonase, polymethylgalacturonase, pectin lyase, and pectate lyase. One unit of the endodepolymerase activity corresponds to the activity resulting in 50% decrease in the relative viscosity of 0.5% citrus pectin solution for 5 min at 40°C and the appropriate pH. Depending on the pH-optima of the enzymes, two modifications of the method are described: 1) for acid pectinases at pH 5.0, and 2) for neutral (mildly alkaline) pectinases at pH 8.0. The modifications differed in the control and in the calculation of the activity. Six enzyme preparations were used to demonstrate the applicability of the method. The parameter used for the calculation of the enzymatic activity was directly proportional to the enzyme concentration (the dependence was linear in the range of at least 10-fold change in the enzyme concentration). The relative error of the method did not exceed 10%.     

Inhibitory kinetics of phenol on the enzyme activity of beta-N-acetyl-D-glucosaminidase from green crab (Scylla serrata)

Chemical pollution such as chromium and phenol in the sea water has been increasing in recent years in China sea. At the same time, marine shellfish such as prawn and crab are sensitive to this pollution. beta-N-acetyl-D-glucosaminidase (NAGase, EC.3.2.1.52) catalyzes the cleavage the oligomers of N-acetylglucosamine (NAG) into the monomer. In this paper, the effects of phenol on the enzyme activity from green crab (Scylla serrata) for the hydrolysis of p-nitrophenyl-N-acetyl-beta-D-glucosaminide (pNP-NAG) have been studied. The results showed that appropriate concentrations of phenol could lead to reversible inhibition on the enzyme and the inhibitor concentration leading to 50% activity lost, IC(50), was estimated to be 75.0+/-2.0 mM. The inhibitory kinetics of phenol on the enzyme in the appropriate concentrations of phenol has been studied using the kinetic method of substrate reaction. The time course of the enzyme for the hydrolysis of pNP-NAG in the presence of different concentrations of phenol showed that at each phenol concentration, the rate decreased with increasing time until a straight line was approached. The results show that the inhibition of the enzyme by phenol is a slow, reversible reaction with fractional remaining activity. The microscopic rate constants are determined for the reaction on phenol with the enzyme.     

Stabilization of immobilized glucose oxidase against thermal inactivation by silanization for biosensor applications

An important requirement of immobilized enzyme based biosensors is the thermal stability of the enzyme. Studies were carried out to increase thermal stability of glucose oxidase (GOD) for biosensor applications. Immobilization of the enzyme was carried out using glass beads as support and the effect of silane concentration (in the range 1-10%) during the silanization step on the thermal stability of GOD has been investigated. Upon incubation at 70 degrees C for 3h, the activity retention with 1% silane was only 23%, which increased with silane concentration to reach a maximum up to 250% of the initial activity with 4% silane. Above this concentration the activity decreased. The increased stability of the enzyme in the presence of high silane concentrations may be attributed to the increase in the surface hydrophobicity of the support. The decrease in the enzyme stability for silane concentrations above 4% was apparently due to the uneven deposition of the silane layer on the glass bead support. Further work on thermal stability above 70 degrees C was carried out by using 4% silane and it was found that the enzyme was stable up to 75 degrees C with an increased activity of 180% after 3-h incubation. Although silanization has been used for the modification of the supports for immobilization of enzymes, the use of higher concentrations to stabilize immobilized enzymes is being reported for the first time.     

Nitrate reductase of rice (Oryza sativa L.) under foot-rot disease

Summary Studies reported here reveal a low nitrate reductase activity in the shoots of MTU 9 rice plants while in roots high enzyme activity has been recorded.Under pathogenesis, a low nitrate reductase activity in the roots and a high enzyme activity in the shoots have been recorded in susceptible rice plants. In the resistant rice plants (GEB 24) no such marked difference in the enzyme activity has been observed.The effect of fusaric and gibberellic acid on this enzyme activity has been studied. In the case of fusaric acid, the nitrate reductase activity in the roots is inversely proportional to the concentration whereas in gibberellic acid, it is directly proportional to the concentration in the shoots.     

Effect of beta-lactoglobulin on the activity of pregastric lipase. A possible role for this protein in ruminant milk.

The interaction of bovine beta-lactoglobulin with palmitic and oleic acids has been studied by a partition equilibrium method. Bovine beta-lactoglobulin displays only one high affinity binding site for fatty acids whose association constants for palmitic and oleic acids are 4.2 x 10(6) and 2.3 x 10(6) M-1, respectively. However, other binding sites with low affinity are also present. The existence of one high affinity binding site is in accordance with the amount of fatty acids naturally bound to beta-lactoglobulin isolated from milk. The effect of beta-lactoglobulin on ruminant pregastric lipases from a pharyngeal extract has been assayed. The activity of pharyngeal lipase on a triglyceride emulsion is increased about 200%, 250% and 190% in the presence of 10 mg/ml, 20 mg/ml and 40 mg/ml of beta-lactoglobulin, respectively, the last concentration representing that found physiologically in colostrum. Albumin, another ligand-binding protein, increases the activity of this enzyme to a lesser extent and high levels tend to inhibit enzyme action. These results indicate that beta-lactoglobulin could participate in the digestion of milk lipids during the neonatal period by enhancing the activity of pregastric lipase through removal of the fatty acids that inhibit this enzyme.     

Agarose-bound horse-liver alcohol dehydrogenase. Dependence of molecular properties and activity on coupling conditions.

1. Spectroscopic methods for protein and active-site determination with the same sample of immobilised horse liver alcohol dehydrogenase have been developed. 2. The influence of pH, active-site protection of the soluble enzyme and protein concentration on coupling of alcohol dehydrogenase with cyanogen-bromide-activated Sepharose has been investigated. In phosphate buffer (pH 8.0) products with over 90% active-site retention have been synthesized. The binary complex alcohol-dehydrogenase . NADH gives a preparation with the same active-site content but a lower apparent specific activity compared to the unprotected enzyme. Increase in protein concentration yields products with the same active-site content relative to bound protein but the apparent specific activity is decreased. 3. The great similarity in spectroscopic properties of soluble and immobilised enzyme, as well as of their ternary complexes, shows that no significant conformational change has taken place during immobilisation. 4. Exchange of the non-catalytic Zn2+ against Co2+ yields a hybrid Sepharose--Co2Zn2-alcohol-dehydrogenase with over 90% active-site retention during metal exchange. The absorption spectra of the soluble and immobilised hybrid are identical.     

Hexokinase activity as marker to assess time of harvest of foot-and-mouth disease virus in BHK21 Cl13 cell cultures

Hexokinase (B.C. 2.7.1.1) activity as a marker enzyme during FMD viral infection has been observed spectrophotometrically in a system coupled with glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase, in supernatants of BHK(21)Cl(13) suspension as well as anchored cell culture at a minimum of 10(4) infective virus particles/ml. Specific activity increased with virus concentration in culture supernatants and abruptly decreased with a fall in virus titer, as has been noted by TCID/50,146 S concentration, and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) readings.     

Determination of concentration and activity of immobilized enzymes

Methods that directly measure the concentration of surface-immobilized biomolecules are scarce. More commonly, the concentration of the soluble molecule is measured before and after immobilization, and the bound concentration is assessed by elimination, assuming that all bound molecules are active. An assay was developed for measuring the active site concentration, activity, and thereby the catalytic turnover rate (k_cat) of an immobilized dihydrofolate reductase as a model system. The new method yielded a similar first-order rate constant, k_cat, to that of the same enzyme in solution. The findings indicate that the activity of the immobilized enzyme, when separated from the surface by the DNA spacers, has not been altered. In addition, a new immobilization method that leads to solution-like activity of the enzyme on the surface is described. The approaches developed here for immobilization and for determining the concentration of an immobilized enzyme are general and can be extended to other enzymes, receptors, and antibodies.     

Activity of angiotensin converting enzyme in women with hypothyroidism]

Serum activity of angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) has been measured in 13 women (mean age 43.1 years) with primary hypothyroidism by spectrofluorometric method of Friedland and Silverstein. The mean enzyme activity was significantly lower in hypothyroid patients than in healthy persons. There is no significant correlation between ACE activity and thyroid hormones concentration.     

An automated continuous assay of membrane-bound and solube ATPases and related enzymes.

A simple, rapid, and precise method is described for the continuous automated determination of the activity of membrane-bound enzymes which deliberate inorganic phosphate, e.g., ATPases and phosphatases. The characteristics of this method, which is based on the determination of liberated phosphate in the presence of nucleotides, are: (A) the enzyme reaction can be followed continuously during a certain period, thus providing a higher precision, as compared to other methods in which the enzyme reaction is measured by few distinct determinations; (B) the enzyme protein and other (membrane) proteins of the enzyme preparation have not to be removed during the continuous determination of enzyme activity because they remain solubilized after denaturation; and (C) low or moderate concentration of nonionic detergents do not disturb the reading of the absorbancy.     

Effect of dimethyl sulphoxide on mitochondrial biogenesis in regenerating rat liver and Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Effect of dimethyl sulphoxide (DMSO) on mitochondrial biogenesis in regenerating rat liver and cells of Saccharomyces cerevisiae during aerobiosis has been studied by monitoring the cytochrome oxidase activity. A single dose of DMSO (275 mg/100-125 g body wt) to normal rats stimulated cytochrome oxidase activity in liver mitochondria while the same dose to partial hepatectomized rats inhibited the enzyme activity. Administration of low dose of DMSO (92 mg/100-125 g body wt) to partial hepatectomized rats did not alter the enzyme activity. Anaerobic cells of S. cerevisiae on aerobiosis for 2 hr attained cytochrome oxidase activity level on par with aerobic cells. Inclusion of DMSO (275 mg/100 ml) in the growth medium of S. cerevisiae during respiratory adaptation exerted partial inhibitory effect on the formation of cytochrome oxidase at 2 hr period, while the 10-fold concentration inhibited the enzyme formation completely. However, the inhibitory effect of DMSO on enzyme formation was abolished on prolonged growth (18 hr and above), while these doses had no influence on cytochrome oxidase in aerobic cells of S. cerevisiae. The results imply that DMSO may be exerting its effect on the assembly of subunits into active enzyme complex during mitochondrial biogenesis.     

Specific immobilization of in vivo biotinylated bacterial luciferase and FMN:NAD(P)H oxidoreductase.

Bacterial bioluminescence, catalyzed by FMN:NAD(P)H oxidoreductase and luciferase, has been used as an analytical tool for quantitating the substrates of NAD(P)H-dependent enzymes. The development of inexpensive and sensitive biosensors based on bacterial bioluminescence would benefit from a method to immobilize the oxidoreductase and luciferase with high specific activity. Toward this end, oxidoreductase and luciferase were fused with a segment of biotin carboxy carrier protein and produced in Escherichia coli. The in vivo biotinylated luciferase and oxidoreductase were immobilized on avidin-conjugated agarose beads with little loss of activity. Coimmobilized enzymes had eight times higher bioluminescence activity than the free enzymes at low enzyme concentration and high NADH concentration. In addition, the immobilized enzymes were more stable than the free enzymes. This immobilization method is also useful to control enzyme orientation, which could increase the efficiency of sequentially operating enzymes like the oxidoreductase-luciferase system.     

Dependence of Lipase Activity on Water Content and Enzyme Concentration in Reverse Micelles

The activity of Candida rugosa lipase (EC 3.1.1.3) in reverse micelles has been measured at various concentrations of water and enzyme with the aim of answering the question, why is the enzyme activity affected by the molar ratio of water to surfactant (w₀ = [H₂O]/[Surfactant])? In the low range of water content (below w₀ ≈ 6), the activity increases with increasing water content, indicating the requirement of a minimum amount of water for the full expression of enzymatic activity. The minimal w₀-value for obtaining maximal activity depends on the enzyme concentration: The higher the enzyme concentration, the higher w_{0, max}. In addition, it was found that, at least for the case of Candida rugosa lipase, the measured dependence of enzyme activity on w₀ does not represent a true chemical equilibrium. Changing the w₀-value during the reaction does not change the activity as expected on the basis of the w₀-activity profile obtained for single w₀ point measurements. All these observations, however, cannot be directly generalized to all enzymes in reverse micelles, due to the peculiarity of lipase. In particular, the enzyme seems to inactivate irreversibly during the solubilization process.