Identification of substrate-binding and selectivity-related residues of maltooligosyltrehalose synthase from the thermophilic archaeon Sulfolobus solfataricus ATCC 35092

Altering the substrate specificity of recombinant l-rhamnose isomerase from Thermoanaerobacterium saccharolyticum NTOU1 to favor d-allose production

l-Rhamnose isomerase (l-RhI) catalyzes rare sugar isomerization between aldoses and ketoses. In an attempt to alter the substrate specificity of Thermoanaerobacterium saccharolyticus NTOU1 l-RhI (TsRhI), residue Ile102 was changed to other polar or charged amino acid residues by site-directed mutagenesis. The results of activity-screening using different substrates indicate that I102N, I102Q, and I102R TsRhIs can increase the preference against d-allose in comparison with the wild-type enzyme. The catalytic efficiencies of the purified I102N, I102Q, and I102R TsRhIs against d-allose are 148 %, 277 %, and 191 %, respectively, of that of wild-type enzyme, while those against l-rhamnose are 100 %, 167 % and 87 %, respectively. Mutant I102N, I102Q, and I102R TsRhIs were noted to have the altered substrate specificity, and I102Q TsRhI has the highest catalytic efficiency against d-allose presumably through the formation of an additional hydrogen bond with d-allose. The purified wild-type and mutant TsRhIs were further used to produce d-allose from 100 g/L d-fructose in the presence of d-allulose 3-epimerase, and the yields can reach as high as 22 % d-allulose and 12 % d-allose upon equilibrium. I102Q TsRhI takes only around half of the time to reach the same 12 % d-allose yield, suggesting that this mutant enzyme has a potential to be applied in d-allose production.

Improved Activity of Sulfolobus acidocaldarius Maltooligosyltrehalose Synthase through Directed Evolution

Maltooligosyltrehalose synthase (MTSase) is a key enzyme for the production of trehalose from starch. Thermophilic MTSases offer advantages for trehalose production but suffer from low yield. In this study, directed evolution was used to increase the production of Sulfolobus acidocaldarius MTSase (SaMTSase) in Escherichia coli. Mutant libraries constructed using error-prone polymerase chain reaction were assessed using high-throughput activity assays. Three mutants with enhanced activities were obtained, the best of which (mutant D-4) exhibited 2.4 times greater activity than wild-type SaMTSase. The specific activity and catalytic efficiency of D-4 were also greater than those of wild-type SaMTSase. The D-4 activity (624.7 U·mL^-1) produced in a 3 L fermenter was 2.0 times greater than that of wild-type SaMTSase. Because the same trehalose yield was obtained using an equal amount of either D-4 or wild-type SaMTSase activity, using D-4 will significantly lower the cost of trehalose production. The activities of the individual mutations present in the three SaMTSase mutants obtained using directed evolution were analyzed. Mutants F284V and T439A exhibited the greatest increases in enzyme activity. Homology models suggested that the decreased side-chain size, weakened hydrophobicity, and decreased interaction might enhance the flexibility of the loop containing catalytic residue Asp443, which was conducive to catalysis.

Crystal structure of glycosyltrehalose synthase from Sulfolobus shibatae DSM5389

Glycosyltrehalose synthase (GTSase) converts the glucosidic bond between the last two glucose residues of amylose from an α-1,4 bond to an α-1,1 bond, generating a nonreducing glycosyl trehaloside, in the first step of the biosynthesis of trehalose. To better understand the structural basis of the catalytic mechanism, the crystal structure of GTSase from the hyperthermophilic archaeon Sulfolobus shibatae DSM5389 (5389-GTSase) has been determined to 2.4 Å resolution by X-ray crystallography. The structure of 5389-GTSase can be divided into five domains. The central domain contains the (β/α)8-barrel fold that is conserved as the catalytic domain in the α-amylase family. Three invariant catalytic carboxylic amino acids in the α-amylase family are also found in GTSase at positions Asp241, Glu269 and Asp460 in the catalytic domain. The shape of the catalytic cavity and the pocket size at the bottom of the cavity correspond to the intramolecular transglycosylation mechanism proposed from previous enzymatic studies.