Unconventional immobilization of dextransucrase with alginate

Different strategies to co-immobilize dextransucrase and dextranase onto agarose based supports: Operational stability study

Co-immobilization is a groundbreaking technique for enzymatic catalysis, sometimes strategic, as for dextransucrase and dextranase. In this approach, dextranase hydrolytic action removes the dextran layer that covers dextransucrase reactive groups, improving the immobilization. Another advantage is the synergic effect of the two enzymes towards prebiotic oligosaccharides production. Thus, both enzymes were co-immobilized onto the heterobifunctional support Amino-Epoxy-Glyoxyl-Agarose (AMEG) and the ion exchanger support monoaminoethyl-N-ethyl-agarose (Manae) at pH 5.2 and 10, followed or not by glutaraldehyde treatment. This work is the first attempt to immobilize dextransucrase under alkaline conditions. The immobilized dextransucrase on AMEG support at pH 10 (12.78 ± 0.70 U/g) presents a similar activity of the biocatalyst produced at pH 5.2 (14.95 ± 0.82 U/g). The activity of dextranase immobilized onto Manae was 5-fold higher than the obtained onto AMEG support. However, the operational stability test showed that the biocatalyst produced on AMEG at pH 5.2 kept >60% of both enzyme activities for five batches. The glutaraldehyde treatment was not worthwhile to improve the operational stability of this biocatalyst.

Immobilization of Glycoside Hydrolase Families GH1, GH13, and GH70: State of the Art and Perspectives

Glycoside hydrolases (GH) are enzymes capable to hydrolyze the glycosidic bond between two carbohydrates or even between a carbohydrate and a non-carbohydrate moiety. Because of the increasing interest for industrial applications of these enzymes, the immobilization of GH has become an important development in order to improve its activity, stability, as well as the possibility of its reuse in batch reactions and in continuous processes. In this review, we focus on the broad aspects of immobilization of enzymes from the specific GH families. A brief introduction on methods of enzyme immobilization is presented, discussing some advantages and drawbacks of this technology. We then review the state of the art of enzyme immobilization of families GH1, GH13, and GH70, with special attention on the enzymes β-glucosidase, α-amylase, cyclodextrin glycosyltransferase, and dextransucrase. In each case, the immobilization protocols are evaluated considering their positive and negative aspects. Finally, the perspectives on new immobilization methods are briefly presented.

Covalent immobilization of Enterococcus faecalis Esawy dextransucrase and dextran synthesis

Enterococcus faecalis Esawy dextransucrase was immobilized in Fe(3+)-cross-linked alginate/carboxymethyl cellulose (AC) beads. The gel beads were modified with polyethylenimine (PEI) followed by glutaraldehyde (GA) to form Fe(3+) (ACPG) beads. Fe(3+) (ACPG) was characterized using FTIR and DSC techniques. GA activated beads showed new two peaks. The first was at 1,717 cm(-1) which refers to (CO) group of a free aldehyde end of glutaraldehyde, and another peak was at 1,660 cm(-1) referring to (CN) group. The immobilization process improved the optimum temperature from 35 to 45°C. The immobilized enzyme showed its optimum activity in wide pH range (4.5-5.4) compared to pH 5.4 in case of free form. Also, the immobilization process improved the thermal and pH enzyme stability to great extent. Reusability test proved that the enzyme activity retained 60% after 15 batch reactions. Immobilized enzyme was applied successfully in the synthesis of oligosaccharides and different molecular weights of dextran.

Extending synthetic routes for oligosaccharides by enzyme, substrate and reaction engineering

The integration of all relevant tools for bioreaction engineering has been a recent challenge. This approach should notably favor the production of oligo- and polysaccharides, which is highly complex due to the requirements of regio- and stereoselectivity. Oligosaccharides (OS) and polysaccharides (PS) have found many interests in the fields of food, pharmaceuticals, and cosmetics due to different specific properties. Food, sweeteners, and food ingredients represent important sectors where OS are used in major amounts. Increasing attention has been devoted to the sophisticated roles of OS and glycosylated compounds, at cell or membrane surfaces, and their function, e.g., in infection and cancer proliferation. The challenge for synthesis is obvious, and convenient approaches using cheap and readily available substrates and enzymes will be discussed. We report on new routes for the synthesis of oligosaccharides (OS), with emphasis on enzymatic reactions, since they offer unique properties, proceeding highly regio- and stereoselective in water solution, and providing for high yields in general.

Biodegradation of oil wastewater by free and immobilized Yarrowia lipolytica W29

The ability of Yarrowia lipolytica W29 immobilized by calcium alginate to degrade oil and chemical oxygen demand (COD) was examined. The degradation rules of oil and COD by immobilized cells with the cell density of 6.65 x 106 CFU/mL degraded 2000 mg/L oil and 2000 mg/L COD within 50 h at 30 degrees C (pH 7.0, 150 r/min), similarly to those of free cells, and the degradation efficiencies of oil and COD by immobilized cells were above 80%, respectively. The factors affecting oil and COD degradation by immobilized cells were investigated, the results showed that immobilized cells had high thermostability compared to that of free cells, and substrate concentration significantly affected degrading ability of immobilized cells. Storage stability and reusability tests revealed that the oil degradation ability of immobilized cells was stable after storing at 4 degrees C for 30 d and reuse for 12 times, respectively, the COD degradation rate of immobilized cells was also maintained 82% at the sixth cycle. These results suggested that immobilized Y. lipolytica might be applicable to a wastewater treatment system for the removal of oil and COD.

Encapsulation of Trigonopsis variabilis D-amino acid oxidase and fast comparison of the operational stabilities of free and immobilized preparations of the enzyme

A one-step procedure of immobilizing soluble and aggregated preparations of D-amino acid oxidase from Trigonopsis variabilis (TvDAO) is reported where carrier-free enzyme was entrapped in semipermeable microcapsules produced from the polycation poly(methylene-co-guanidine) in combination with CaCl2 and the polyanions alginate and cellulose sulfate. The yield of immobilization, expressed as the fraction of original activity present in microcapsules, was approximately 52 +/- 5%. The effectiveness of the entrapped oxidase for O2-dependent conversion of D-methionine at 25 degrees C was 85 +/- 10% of the free enzyme preparation. Because continuous spectrophotometric assays are generally not well compatible with insoluble enzymes, we employed a dynamic method for the rapid in situ estimation of activity and relatedly, stability of free and encapsulated oxidases using on-line measurements of the concentration of dissolved O2. Integral and differential modes of data acquisition were utilized to examine cases of fast and slow inactivation of the enzyme, respectively. With a half-life of 60 h, encapsulated TvDAO was approximately 720-fold more stable than the free enzyme under conditions of bubble aeration at 25 degrees C. The soluble oxidase was stabilized by added FAD only at temperatures of 35 degrees C or greater.

Immobilization of dextranase from Chaetomium erraticum

In order to facilitate the Co-Immobilization of dextransucrase and dextranase, various techniques for the immobilization of industrial endo-dextranase from Chaetomium erraticum (Novozymes A/S) were researched. Adsorption isotherms at various pH-values have been determined for bentonite (Montmorillonite), hydroxyapatite and Streamline DEAE. Using bentonite and hydroxyapatite, highest activity loads (12,000 Ug(-1); 2900 Ug(-1), respectively) can be achieved without a significant change of the apparent Michaelis-Menten constant K(M). For successful adsorption, enzyme to bentonite ratios greater than 0.4 (w/w) have to be used as lower ratios lead to 90% enzyme inactivation due to bentonite contact. In addition, covalent linkage using the activated oxiran carriers Eupergit C and Eupergit C250L as well as linkage with aminopropyl silica via metaperiodate activation of glycosyl moiety of dextranase are discussed. This is also the first report probing the structure of a matrix containing dextranase by use of substrate species with different molecular weights. From this we can observe a relationship between the porosity of Eupergit and dextran dependent activity. For the reactor concept using Co-Immobilisates, hydroxyapatite will be preferred to Eupergit because of its higher specific activity and dispersity.

Purification and characterization of tannase from Paecilomyces variotii: hydrolysis of tannic acid using immobilized tannase

An extracellular tannase (tannin acyl hydrolase) was isolated from Paecilomyces variotii and purified from cell-free culture filtrate using ammonium sulfate precipitation followed by ion exchange and gel filtration chromatography. Fractional precipitation of the culture filtrate with ammonium sulfate yielded 78.7% with 13.6-folds purification, and diethylaminoethyl-cellulose column chromatography and gel filtration showed 19.4-folds and 30.5-folds purifications, respectively. Molecular mass of tannase was found 149.8 kDa through native polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (PAGE) analysis. Sodium dodecyl sulphate-PAGE revealed that the purified tannase was a monomeric enzyme with a molecular mass of 45 kDa. Temperature of 30 to 50 degrees C and pH of 5.0 to 7.0 were optimum for tannase activity and stability. Tannase immobilized on alginate beads could hydrolyze tannic acid even after extensive reuse and retained about 85% of the initial activity. Thin layer chromatography, high performance liquid chromatography, and (1)H-nuclear magnetic resonance spectral analysis confirmed that gallic acid was formed as a byproduct during hydrolysis of tannic acid.

Design of immobilised dextransucrase for fluidised bed application

Immobilisation of dextransucrase from Leuconostoc mesenteroides NRRL B-512F in alginate is optimised for applications in a fluidised bed reactor with high concentrated sugar solutions, in order to allow a continuous formation of defined oligosaccharides as prebiotic isomalto-oligosaccharides. Efficient design of fluidised bed immobilised biocatalyst in high density solutions requires particles with elevated density, high effectiveness and both thermal and mechanical stability. Inert silica flour/sand (Mikrosil 300) as supplement turned out to be best suited for increasing the density up to 1400 kg m(-3) of the alginate beads and generating a stable expanded bed without diffusional restrictions. Kinetic investigations demonstrate that low effectiveness of immobilised enzyme due to close association to dextranpolymers (dextran content of enzyme preparation >90%) is compensated by reducing the particle size and/or by decreasing the dextran content. A low dextran content (5%) is sufficient to immobilise and stabilise the enzyme, thus diffusional limitation is reduced essentially while operational stability is maintained. Fluidisation behaviour and bed expansion proved to be appropriate for the intended application. Both calculated and measured expansion coefficients showed good agreement for different conditions.

Synthesis of isomaltooligosaccharides and oligodextrans in a recycle membrane bioreactor by the combined use of dextransucrase and dextranase

A recycle ultrafiltration membrane reactor was used to develop a continuous synthesis process for the production of isomaltooligosaccharides (IMO) from sucrose, using the enzymes dextransucrase and dextranase. A variety of membranes were tested and the parameters affecting reactor stability, productivity, and product molecular weight distribution were investigated. Enzyme inactivation in the reactor was reduced with the use of a non-ionic surfactant but its use had severe adverse effects on the membrane pore size and porosity. During continuous isomaltooligosaccharide synthesis, dextransucrase inactivation was shown to occur as a result of the dextranase activity and it was dependent mainly on the substrate availability in the reactor and the hydrolytic activity of dextranase. Substrate and dextranase concentrations (50-200 mg/mL(-1) and 10-30 U/mL(-1), respectively) affected permeate fluxes, reactor productivity, and product average molecular weight. The oligodextrans and isomaltooligosaccharides formed had molecular weights lower than in batch synthesis reactions but they largely consisted of oligosaccharides with a degree of polymerization (DP) greater than 5, depending on the synthesis conditions. No significant rejection of the sugars formed was shown by the membranes and permeate flux was dependent on tangential flow velocity.

Oligosaccharide synthesis by dextransucrase: new unconventional acceptors

The acceptor reactions of dextransucrase offer the potential for a targeted synthesis of a wide range of di-, tri- and higher oligosaccharides by the transfer of a glucosyl group from sucrose to the acceptor. We here report on results which show that the synthetic potential of this enzyme is not restricted to 'normal' saccharides. Additionally functionalized saccharides, such as alditols, aldosuloses, sugar acids, alkyl saccharides, and glycals, and rather unconventional saccharides, such as fructose dianhydride, may also act as acceptors. Some of these acceptors even turned out to be relatively efficient: alpha-D-glucopyranosyl-(1-->5)-D-arabinonic acid, alpha-D-glucopyranosyl-(1-->4)-D-glucitol, alpha-D-glucopyranosyl-(1-->6)-D-glucitol, alpha-D-glucopyranosyl-(1-->6)-D-mannitol, alpha-D-fructofuranosyl-beta-D-fructofuranosyl-(1,2':2,3')-dianhydride, 1,5-anhydro-2-deoxy-D-arabino-hex-1-enitol ('D-glucal'), and may therefore be of interest for future applications of the dextransucrase acceptor reaction.

Reactor optimization for alpha-1,2 glucooligosaccharide synthesis by immobilized dextransucrase

The immobilization of dextransucrase in Ca-alginate beads relies on the close association between dextran polymer and dextransucrase. However, high amounts of dextran in the enzyme preparation drastically limit the specific activity of the immobilized enzyme (4 U/mL of alginate beads). Moreover, even in the absence of diffusion limitation at the batch conditions used, the enzyme behavior is modified by entrapment so that the dextran yield increases and the alpha-1,2 glucooligosaccharides (GOS) are produced with a lower yield (46.6% instead of 56.7%) and have a lower mean degree of polymerization than with the free dextransucrase. When the immobilized catalyst is used in a continuous reaction, the reactor flow rate necessary to obtain high conversion of the substrates is very low, leading to external diffusion resistance. As a result, dextran synthesis is even higher than in the batch reaction, and its accumulation within the alginate beads limits the operational stability of the catalyst and decreases glucooligosaccharide yield and productivity. This effect can be limited by using reactor columns with length to diameter ratio > or =20, and by optimizing the substrate concentrations in the feed solution: the best productivity obtained was 3.74 g. U(-1). h(-1), with an alpha-1,2 GOS yield of 36%.

Modelling of oligosaccharide synthesis by dextransucrase

Dextransucrase catalyses the formation of dextran, but also of numerous oligosaccharides from sucrose and different acceptors, if appropriate conditions are chosen. Much experimental work has been carried out and a scheme of reactions and a mathematical model have been developed to describe the complex kinetic behaviour of the enzyme. A computer program was used to calculate the parameters of the model from a broad range of experimental data, investigating a large number of kinetic tests with the acceptors maltose and fructose. The results lead to design considerations for a continuous reactor system with immobilized dextransucrase to produce leucrose, a disaccharide of industrial interest.

Adsorption and enzyme (beta-galactosidase and alpha-chymotrypsin): immobilization properties of gel fiber prepared by the gel formation of cellulose acetate and titanium iso-propoxide

We prepared a new composite gel fiber by the gel formation of cellulose acetate and titanium iso-propoxide. The fiber is harder than alginate gel; it is also stable in common solvents, phosphate solution, and electrolyte solutions over a wide range of pH from 3 to 10. The fiber shows amphoretic adsorption properties depending on pH, namely, it acts anionic with decreasing pH and cationic with increasing pH. However, the fiber had no adsorption property for a pyrogen endotoxin. The beta-galactosidase and alpha-chymotrypsin not retained in alginate gel were immobilized on the fibers by this method. The pH, temperature, and repeated run stabilities of the immobilized enzyme were compared to those of the native one. Copyright 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.