l-Phenylalanine synthesis catalyzed by immobilized aspartate aminotransferase

Enhanced catalytic activity of recombinant transaminase by molecular modification to improve L-phosphinothricin production

Transaminases catalyze the transfer of an amino group from a donor to a keto group of an acceptor substrate and are applicable to the asymmetric synthesis of herbicide L-phosphinothricin (L-PPT). Here, the important residue sites (C390, I22, V52, R141, Y138 and D239) of transaminase from Salmonella enterica (SeTA) were modified at the adjacency of the substrate-binding pocket to improve the enzyme activity. Among the constructed mutant library, the SeTA-Y138F mutant displayed higher activity than the wild-type enzyme. Compared to the wild-type, SeTA-Y138F showed improved catalytic efficiency with a 4.36-fold increase. The K_m and k_cat of SeTA -Y138F toward 4-(hydroxy(methyl) phosphoryl)-2-oxobutanoic acid (PPO) were 26.39 mM and 34.28 s^-1, respectively. Subsequently, the three-enzyme co-expression system of E. coli BL21 (DE3)/pACYCDuet-SeTA-Y138F/pETDuet-AlaDH-BsGDH was developed by combining a alanine dehydrogenase (AlaDH) to recycle the byproduct of amino donor, a glucose dehydrogenase (BsGDH) for cofactor recycling. Under the optimized conditions, an excellent L-PPT yield of 90.8% was achieved by the whole-cell biotransformation with 500 mM PPO. It exhibited the tri-enzymatic coupling system was potential for effective production of target L-PPT.

Novel transaminases from thermophiles: from discovery to application

Transaminases (TAs) are promising biocatalysts for chiral amine synthesis; however, only few thermophilic TAs have been described to date. In this work, a genome mining approach was taken to seek novel TAs from nine thermophilic microorganisms. TA sequences were identified from their respective genome sequences and their Pfam were predicted confirming that TAs class I–II are the most abundant (50%), followed by class III (26%), V (16%), IV (8%) and VI (1%). The percentage of open reading frames (ORFs) that are TAs ranges from 0.689% in Thermococcus litoralis to 0.424% in Sulfolobus solfataricus. A total of 94 putative TAs were successfully cloned and expressed into E. coli, showing mostly good expression levels when using a chemical chaperone media containing d‐sorbitol. Kinetic and end‐point colorimetric assays with different amino donors–acceptors confirmed TAs activity allowing for initial exploration of the substrate scope. Stereoselective and non‐stereoselective serine‐TAs were selected for the synthesis of hydroxypyruvate (HPA). Low HPA reaction yields were observed with four non‐stereoselective serine‐TAs, whilst two stereoselective serine‐TAs showed significantly higher yields. Coupling serine‐TA reactions to a transketolase to yield l‐erythrulose (Ery) substantially increased serine conversion into HPA. Combining both stereoselective serine‐TAs and transketolase using the inexpensive racemic D/L‐serine led to high Ery yield (82%). Thermal characterization of stereoselective serine‐TAs confirmed they have excellent thermostability up to 60°C and high optimum temperatures.

Label-free quantitative proteomics analysis of jujube (Ziziphus jujuba Mill.) during different growth stages

Chinese jujube (Zizyphus jujuba Mill.), a member of the Rhamnaceae family with favorable nutritional and flavor quality, exhibited characteristic climacteric changes during its fruit growth stage. Therefore, fruit samples were harvested at four developmental stages on days 55 (young fruits), 76 (white-mature fruits), 96 (half-red fruits), and 116 (full-red fruits) after flowering (DAF). This study then investigated those four growth stage changes of the jujube proteome using label-free quantification proteomics. The results identified 4762 proteins in the samples, of which 3757 proteins were quantified. Compared with former stages, the stages examined were designated as "76 vs. 55 DAF" group, "96 vs. 76 DAF" group, and "116 vs. 96 DAF" group. Gene Ontology (GO) and KEGG annotation and enrichment analysis of the differentially expressed proteins (DEPs) showed that 76 vs. 55 DAF group pathways represented amino sugar, nucleotide sugar, ascorbate, and aldarate metabolic pathways. These pathways were associated with cell division and resistance. In the study, the jujube fruit puffing slowed down and attained a stable growth stage in the 76 vs. 55 DAF group. However, fatty acid biosynthesis and phenylalanine metabolism was mainly enriched in the 96 vs. 76 DAF group. Fatty acids are precursors of aromatic substances and fat-soluble pigments in fruit. The upregulation of differential proteins at this stage indicates that aromatic compounds were synthesized in large quantities at this stage and that fruit would enter the ripening stage. During the ripening stage, 55 DEPs were identified to be involved in photosynthesis and flavonoid biosynthesis in the 116 vs. 96 DAF group. Also, the fruit entered the mature stage, which showed that flavonoids were produced in large quantities. Furthermore, the color of jujube turned red, and photosynthesis was significantly reduced. Hence, a link was established between protein profiles and growth phenotypes, which will help improve our understanding of jujube fruit growth at the proteomic level.

Immobilization of cells and enzymes to LentiKats®

Biocatalyst immobilization is one of the techniques, which can improve whole cells or enzyme applications. This method, based on the fixation of the biocatalyst into or onto various materials, may increase robustness of the biocatalyst, allows its reuse, or improves the product yield. In recent decades, a number of immobilization techniques have been developed. They can be divided according to the used natural or synthetic material and principle of biocatalyst fixation in the particle. One option, based on the entrapment of cells or enzymes into a synthetic polyvinyl alcohol lens with original shape, is LentiKats® immobilization. This review describes the preparation principle of these particles and summarizes existing successful LentiKats® immobilizations. In addition, examples are compared with other immobilization techniques or free biocatalysts, pointing to the advantages and disadvantages of LentiKats®.

Nanoparticle-mediated remote control of enzymatic activity

Nanomaterials have found numerous applications as tunable, remotely controlled platforms for drug delivery, hyperthermia cancer treatment, and various other biomedical applications. The basis for the interest lies in their unique properties achieved at the nanoscale that can be accessed via remote stimuli. These properties could then be exploited to simultaneously activate secondary systems that are not remotely actuatable. In this work, iron oxide nanoparticles are encapsulated in a bisacrylamide cross-linked polyacrylamide hydrogel network along with a model dehalogenase enzyme, L-2-HAD(ST). This thermophilic enzyme is activated at elevated temperatures and has been shown to have optimal activity at 70 °C. By exposing the Fe(3)O(4) nanoparticles to a remote stimulus, an alternating magnetic field (AMF), enhanced system heating can be achieved, thus remotely activating the enzyme. The internal heating of the nanocomposite hydrogel network in the AMF results in a 2-fold increase in enzymatic activity as compared to the same hydrogel heated externally in a water bath, suggesting that the internal heating of the nanoparticles is more efficient than the diffusion-limited heating of the water bath. This system may prove useful for remote actuation of biomedical and environmentally relevant enzymes and find applications in a variety of fields.