Improved Stabilization of Genetically Modified Penicillin G Acylase in the Presence of Organic Cosolvents by Co- Immobilization of the Enzyme with Polyethyleneimine

Lipase immobilization via cross-linked enzyme aggregates: Problems and prospects - A review

In this review we have focused on the preparation of cross-linked enzyme aggregates (CLEAs) from lipases, as these are among the most used enzyme in bioprocesses. This immobilization method is considered very attractive due to preparation simplicity, non-use of supports and the possibility of using crude enzyme extracts. CLEAs provide lipase stabilization under extreme temperature or pH conditions or in the presence of organic solvents, in addition to preventing enzyme leaching in aqueous medium. However, it presents some problems in the preparation and limitations in their use. The problems in preparation refer mainly to the crosslinking step, and may be solved using an aminated feeder. The problems in handling have been tackled designing magnetic-CLEAs or trapping the CLEAs in particles with better mechanical properties, the substrate diffusion problems has been reduced by producing more porous-CLEAs, etc. The enzyme co-immobilization using combi-CLEAs is also a new tendency. Therefore, this review explores the CLEAs methodology aimed at lipase immobilization and its applications.

Selective Coimmobilization of His-Tagged Enzymes on Yttrium-Stabilized Zirconia-Based Membranes for Continuous Asymmetric Bioreductions

Scalability, process control, and modularity are some of the advantages that make flow biocatalysis a key-enabling technology for green and sustainable chemistry. In this context, rigid porous solid membranes hold the promise to expand the toolbox of flow biocatalysis due to their chemical stability and inertness. Yttrium-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) fulfills these properties; however, it has been scarcely exploited as a carrier for enzymes. Here, we discovered an unprecedented interaction between YSZ materials and His-tagged enzymes that enables the fabrication of multifunctional biocatalytic membranes for bioredox cascades. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy suggests that enzyme immobilization is driven by coordination interactions between the imidazole groups of His-tags and both Zr and Y atoms. As model enzymes, we coimmobilized in-flow a thermophilic hydroxybutyryl-CoA dehydrogenase (TtHBDH-His) and a formate dehydrogenase (His-CbFDH) for the continuous asymmetric reduction of ethyl acetoacetate with in situ redox cofactor recycling. Fluorescence confocal microscopy deciphered the spatial organization of the two coimmobilized enzymes, pointing out the importance of the coimmobilization sequence. Finally, the coimmobilized system succeeded in situ, recycling the redox cofactor, maintaining the specific productivity using only 0.05 mM NADH, and accumulating a total enzyme turnover number of 4000 in 24 h. This work presents YSZ materials as ready-to-use carriers for the site-directed enzyme in-flow immobilization and the application of the resulting heterogeneous biocatalysts for continuous biomanufacturing.

Co-immobilized Phosphorylated Cofactors and Enzymes as Self-Sufficient Heterogeneous Biocatalysts for Chemical Processes

Enzyme cofactors play a major role in biocatalysis, as many enzymes require them to catalyze highly valuable reactions in organic synthesis. However, the cofactor recycling is often a hurdle to implement enzymes at the industrial level. The fabrication of heterogeneous biocatalysts co-immobilizing phosphorylated cofactors (PLP, FAD+ , and NAD+ ) and enzymes onto the same solid material is reported to perform chemical reactions without exogeneous addition of cofactors in aqueous media. In these self-sufficient heterogeneous biocatalysts, the immobilized enzymes are catalytically active and the immobilized cofactors catalytically available and retained into the solid phase for several reaction cycles. Finally, we have applied a NAD+ -dependent heterogeneous biocatalyst to continuous flow asymmetric reduction of prochiral ketones, thus demonstrating the robustness of this approach for large scale biotransformations.

Polyethylenimine: a very useful ionic polymer in the design of immobilized enzyme biocatalysts

This review discusses the possible roles of polyethylenimine (PEI) in the design of improved immobilized biocatalysts from diverse perspectives.

Penicillin acylase-catalyzed synthesis of N-bromoacetyl-7-aminocephalosporanic acid, the key intermediate for the production of cefathiamidine

BACKGROUND

Enzymatic approaches have become promising alternatives to chemical methods for the production of semi-synthetic β-lactam antibiotics. In this work, enzymatic synthesis of N-bromoacetyl-7-aminocephalosporanic acid (N-bromoacetyl-7-ACA), the key intermediate for the production of cefathiamidine, was reported for the first time.

RESULTS

Of the immobilized penicillin acylases (PAs) tested, PGA-750 was the best biocatalyst. Optimization of the biocatalytic process was conducted. The optimal acyl donor, molar ratio of acyl donor to 7-ACA, pH, temperature, 7-ACA concentration, and enzyme dosage were methyl bromoacetate, 3, 7.5, 20 °C, 50 mmol/L and 4 U/mL, respectively. Under the optimal conditions, enzymatic N-acylation of 7-ACA with methyl bromoacetate afforded the desired product with the yield of 85% in 2 h, where the synthesis/hydrolysis (S/H) ratio was approximately 1.5. The immobilized enzyme PGA-750 exhibited good operational stability, and the relative yields of approximately 90% and 63% were achieved, respectively, when it was reused in 7th and 11th batch.

CONCLUSIONS

An enzymatic approach to N-bromoacetyl-7-ACA, the key intermediate for the industrial production of cefathiamidine, has been developed successfully in a fully aqueous medium. The present work may open up a novel opportunity for the production of cefathiamidine through a simple and green process.Graphical abstractEnzymatic synthesis of N-bromoacetyl-7-ACA, the key intermediate for the production of cefathiamidine, was reported for the first time.

MOF-templated rough, ultrathin inorganic microcapsules for enzyme immobilization

Enzyme-containing ultrathin titania microcapsules with rough surfaces were prepared by using MOF as a hard template to mediate the hierarchical structures of the microcapsule shell.

Amination of enzymes to improve biocatalyst performance: coupling genetic modification and physicochemical tools

Improvement of the features of an enzyme is in many instances a pre-requisite for the industrial implementation of these exceedingly interesting biocatalysts.

Modulation of the microenvironment surrounding the active site of penicillin G acylase immobilized on acrylic carriers improves the enzymatic synthesis of cephalosporins

The catalytic properties of penicillin G acylase (PGA) from Escherichia coli in kinetically controlled synthesis of β-lactam antibiotics are negatively affected upon immobilization on hydrophobic acrylic carriers. Two strategies have been here pursued to improve the synthetic performance of PGA immobilized on epoxy-activated acrylic carriers. First, an aldehyde-based spacer was inserted on the carrier surface by glutaraldehyde activation (immobilization yield = 50%). The resulting 3-fold higher synthesis/hydrolysis ratio (vs/vh₁ = 9.7 ± 0.7 and 10.9 ± 0.7 for Eupergit^® C and Sepabeads^® EC-EP, respectively) with respect to the unmodified support (vs/vh₁ = 3.3 ± 0.4) was ascribed to a facilitated diffusion of substrates and products as a result of the increased distance between the enzyme and the carrier surface. A second series of catalysts was prepared by direct immobilization of PGA on epoxy-activated acrylic carriers (Eupergit^® C), followed by quenching of oxiranes not involved in the binding with the protein with different nucleophiles (amino acids, amines, amino alcohols, thiols and amino thiols). In most cases, this derivatization increased the synthesis/hydrolysis ratio with respect to the non derivatized carrier. Particularly, post-immobilization treatment with cysteine resulted in about 2.5-fold higher vs/vh₁ compared to the untreated biocatalyst, although the immobilization yield decreased from 70% (untreated Eupergit^® C) to 20%. Glutaraldehyde- and cysteine-treated Eupergit^® C catalyzed the synthesis of cefazolin in 88% (±0.9) and 87% (±1.6) conversion, respectively, whereas untreated Eupergit^® C afforded this antibiotic in 79% (±1.2) conversion.

Enhancing the functional properties of thermophilic enzymes by chemical modification and immobilization

The immobilization of proteins (mostly typically enzymes) onto solid supports is mature technology and has been used successfully to enhance biocatalytic processes in a wide range of industrial applications. However, continued developments in immobilization technology have led to more sophisticated and specialized applications of the process. A combination of targeted chemistries, for both the support and the protein, sometimes in combination with additional chemical and/or genetic engineering, has led to the development of methods for the modification of protein functional properties, for enhancing protein stability and for the recovery of specific proteins from complex mixtures. In particular, the development of effective methods for immobilizing large multi-subunit proteins with multiple covalent linkages (multi-point immobilization) has been effective in stabilizing proteins where subunit dissociation is the initial step in enzyme inactivation. In some instances, multiple benefits are achievable in a single process. Here we comprehensively review the literature pertaining to immobilization and chemical modification of different enzyme classes from thermophiles, with emphasis on the chemistries involved and their implications for modification of the enzyme functional properties. We also highlight the potential for synergies in the combined use of immobilization and other chemical modifications.

Co-immobilized coupled enzyme systems in biotechnology

The development of coimmobilized multi-enzymatic systems is increasingly driven by economic and environmental constraints that provide an impetus to develop alternatives to conventional multistep synthetic methods. As in nature, enzyme-based systems work cooperatively to direct the formation of desired products within the defined compartmentalization of a cell. In an attempt to mimic biology, coimmobilization is intended to immobilize a number of sequential or cooperating biocatalysts on the same support to impart stability and enhance reaction kinetics by optimizing catalytic turnover. There are three primary reasons for the utilization of coimmobilized enzymes: to enhance the efficiency of one of the enzymes by the in-situ generation of its substrate, to simplify a process that is conventionally carried out in several steps and/or to eliminate undesired by-products of an enzymatic reaction. As such, coimmobilization provides benefits that span numerous biotechnological applications, from biosensing of molecules to cofactor recycling and to combination of multiple biocatalysts for the synthesis of valuable products.

Enhancement of microwave-assisted covalent immobilization of penicillin acylase using macromolecular crowding and glycine quenching

In order to create macromolecular crowding resembling cells in mesopores and improve the covalent immobilization of penicillin acylase (PA), macromolecular reagents were covalently assembled on the walls of mesocellular silica foams (MCFs) and paralleled enzyme molecules under microwave irradiation at low temperatures. The effects of kind and content of macromolecules on immobilization and the characteristics of the immobilized enzyme were investigated carefully. The maximum specific activities of PA assembled with Dex 10 (Dextran, Mw 10000) (85.3 U/mg) and BSA (Bovine Serum Albumin) (112.7 U/mg) in MCFs under microwave irradiation were 1.73 and 1.31 times, respectively, that of PA solely immobilized by the conventional method. The optimum reaction temperature rose from 45-55 degrees C. Moreover, amino acids were used to quench excess activated groups in order to improve the thermostability of the immobilized enzyme. PA coassembled with Dex 10 in mesopores retained 88% of its initial catalytic activity after heating at 50 degrees C for 6 h, as a result of glycine quenching the excess activated groups. This biomolecule enhanced the thermostability of the enzyme preparation by 2-fold. A crowding environment resembling cells made from macromolecular reagents would be suitable for stabilizing the structure of PA and improving its catalytic activity. Glycine, a small biocompatible molecule, quenched the excess activated groups and modified the surface chemical properties of the mesoporous support, which would further favor the stability of PA at higher temperatures. Combining macromolecular crowding with glycine quenching was one of the efficient strategies adopted to improve microwave-assisted covalent PA immobilization.

Phenol degradation by Aureobasidium pullulans FE13 isolated from industrial effluents

The degradation of phenol (2-30 mM) by free cells and by alginate-immobilized cells of Aureobasidium pullulans FE13 isolated from stainless steel effluents was studied in batch cultures with saline solution not supplemented with nutrients or yeast extract. The rate at which the immobilized cells degrade phenol was similar to the rate at which the suspended cells could degrade phenol, for a concentration of up to 16 mM of phenol. The maximum phenol volumetric degradation rate for 16 mM phenol was found to be 18.35 mg l(-1)h(-1) in the assays with free cells and 20.45 mg l(-1)h(-1) in the assays with alginate-immobilized cells, 18 mM phenol and cellular concentration of 0.176 g/l. At concentrations higher than this, an inhibitory effect was observed, resulting in the lowering of the phenol degradation rates. The immobilization was detrimental to the catechol 1,2-dioxygenase activity. However, the immobilized cells remained viable for a longer period, increasing the efficiency of phenol degradation. The yeast showed catechol 1,2-dioxygenase activity only after growth in the phenol, which was induced at phenol concentrations as low as 0.05 mM and up to 25 mM at 45 h of incubation at 30 degrees C. Phenol concentrations higher than 6mM were inhibitory to the enzyme. Addition of glucose, lactate, succinate, and benzoate reduced the rate at which phenol is consumed by cells. Our results suggest that inoculants based on immobilized cells of A. pullulans FE13 has potential application in the biodegradation of phenol and possibly in the degradation of other related aromatic compounds.