A Mechanistic Study of Trichoderma reesei Cel7B Catalyzed Glycosidic Bond Cleavage

Improving the Enzymatic Activity and Stability of a Lytic Polysaccharide Monooxygenase

Lytic Polysaccharide Monooxygenases (LPMOs) are copper-dependent enzymes that play a pivotal role in the enzymatic conversion of the most recalcitrant polysaccharides, such as cellulose and chitin. Hence, protein engineering is highly required to enhance their catalytic efficiencies. To this effect, we optimized the protein sequence encoding for an LPMO from Bacillus amyloliquefaciens (BaLPMO10A) using the sequence consensus method. Enzyme activity was determined using the chromogenic substrate 2,6-Dimethoxyphenol (2,6-DMP). Compared with the wild type (WT), the variants exhibit up to a 93.7% increase in activity against 2,6-DMP. We also showed that BaLPMO10A can hydrolyze p-nitrophenyl-β-D-cellobioside (PNPC), carboxymethylcellulose (CMC), and phosphoric acid-swollen cellulose (PASC). In addition to this, we investigated the degradation potential of BaLPMO10A against various substrates such as PASC, filter paper (FP), and Avicel, in synergy with the commercial cellulase, and it showed up to 2.7-, 2.0- and 1.9-fold increases in production with the substrates PASC, FP, and Avicel, respectively, compared to cellulase alone. Moreover, we examined the thermostability of BaLPMO10A. The mutants exhibited enhanced thermostability with an apparent melting temperature increase of up to 7.5 °C compared to the WT. The engineered BaLPMO10A with higher activity and thermal stability provides a better tool for cellulose depolymerization.

Machine learning reveals sequence-function relationships in family 7 glycoside hydrolases

Family 7 glycoside hydrolases (GH7) are among the principal enzymes for cellulose degradation in nature and industrially. These enzymes are often bimodular, including a catalytic domain and carbohydrate-binding module (CBM) attached via a flexible linker, and exhibit an active site that binds cello-oligomers of up to ten glucosyl moieties. GH7 cellulases consist of two major subtypes: cellobiohydrolases (CBH) and endoglucanases (EG). Despite the critical importance of GH7 enzymes, there remain gaps in our understanding of how GH7 sequence and structure relate to function. Here, we employed machine learning to gain data-driven insights into relationships between sequence, structure, and function across the GH7 family. Machine-learning models, trained only on the number of residues in the active-site loops as features, were able to discriminate GH7 CBHs and EGs with up to 99% accuracy, demonstrating that the lengths of loops A4, B2, B3, and B4 strongly correlate with functional subtype across the GH7 family. Classification rules were derived such that specific residues at 42 different sequence positions each predicted the functional subtype with accuracies surpassing 87%. A random forest model trained on residues at 19 positions in the catalytic domain predicted the presence of a CBM with 89.5% accuracy. Our machine learning results recapitulate, as top-performing features, a substantial number of the sequence positions determined by previous experimental studies to play vital roles in GH7 activity. We surmise that the yet-to-be-explored sequence positions among the top-performing features also contribute to GH7 functional variation and may be exploited to understand and manipulate function.

Computing Cellulase Kinetics with a Two-Domain Linear Interaction Energy Approach

While heterogeneous enzyme reactions play an essential role in both nature and green industries, computational predictions of their catalytic properties remain scarce. Recent experimental work demonstrated the applicability of the Sabatier principle for heterogeneous biocatalysis. This provides a simple relationship between binding strength and the catalytic rate and potentially opens a new way for inexpensive computational determination of kinetic parameters. However, broader implementation of this approach will require fast and reliable prediction of binding free energies of complex two-phase systems, and computational procedures for this are still elusive. Here, we propose a new framework for the assessment of the binding strengths of multidomain proteins, in general, and interfacial enzymes, in particular, based on an extended linear interaction energy (LIE) method. This two-domain LIE (2D-LIE) approach was successfully applied to predict binding and activation free energies of a diverse set of cellulases and resulted in robust models with high accuracy. Overall, our method provides a fast computational screening tool for cellulases that have not been experimentally characterized, and we posit that it may also be applicable to other heterogeneously acting biocatalysts.

Binding Process and Free Energy Characteristics of Cellulose Chain into the Catalytic Domain of Cellobiohydrolase TrCel7A

It was observed in experiments that the catalytic domain (CD) of Trichoderma reesei Cel7A (TrCel7A) hydrolyzes crystalline cellulose in a processive manner, but the underlying binding mechanism is still unknown. Here, through replica-exchange molecular dynamics simulations, we find that the loading and sucking-in process of the cellulose chain into CD is entropy-driven and enthalpy-unfavorable, which firmly relate to the desolvation of the binding channel of CD. During the loading process, hydrophobic interactions play a dominant role because several aromatic residues have been identified to guide the cellulose chain processing. At the active site, a transition from enthalpy- to entropy-driven is detected for the driving force. Such a finding reveals the indispensability of the catalytic reaction of the glycosidic bond to provide the energy to drive the movements of the cellulose chain. Our study reveals the interaction pictures between the cellulose chain and TrCel7A at the atomic level, which helps better understand the catalytic mechanism of TrCel7A.

Structural insights into the substrate specificity of a glycoside hydrolase family 5 lichenase from Caldicellulosiruptor sp. F32

Glycoside hydrolase (GH) family 5 is one of the largest GH families with various GH activities including lichenase, but the structural basis of the GH5 lichenase activity is still unknown. A novel thermostable lichenase F32EG5 belonging to GH5 was identified from an extremely thermophilic bacterium Caldicellulosiruptor sp. F32. F32EG5 is a bi-functional cellulose and a lichenan-degrading enzyme, and exhibited a high activity on β-1,3-1,4-glucan but side activity on cellulose. Thin-layer chromatography and NMR analyses indicated that F32EG5 cleaved the β-1,4 linkage or the β-1,3 linkage while a 4-O-substitued glucose residue linked to a glucose residue through a β-1,3 linkage, which is completely different from extensively studied GH16 lichenase that catalyses strict endo-hydrolysis of the β-1,4-glycosidic linkage adjacent to a 3-O-substitued glucose residue in the mixed-linked β-glucans. The crystal structure of F32EG5 was determined to 2.8 Å resolution, and the crystal structure of the complex of F32EG5 E193Q mutant and cellotetraose was determined to 1.7 Å resolution, which revealed that the exit subsites of substrate-binding sites contribute to both thermostability and substrate specificity of F32EG5. The sugar chain showed a sharp bend in the complex structure, suggesting that a substrate cleft fitting to the bent sugar chains in lichenan is a common feature of GH5 lichenases. The mechanism of thermostability and substrate selectivity of F32EG5 was further demonstrated by molecular dynamics simulation and site-directed mutagenesis. These results provide biochemical and structural insights into thermostability and substrate selectivity of GH5 lichenases, which have potential in industrial processes.

Solvent effect on hydrogen bonded Tyr⋯Asp⋯Arg triads: Enzymatic catalyzed model system

The hydrogen bond plays a vital role in structural arrangement, intermediate state stabilization, materials function, and biological activity of certain enzymatic reactions. The solvent and electronic effects on hydrogen bonds are illustrated employing the polarizable contimuum model at B3LYP/6-311++G(d,p) level. Geometry optimizations reflect the significant solvent and electronic effect. The proton departs spontaneously upon oxidation from the hydroxyl group of tyrosyl in hydrogen bonded Tyr⋯Asp⋯Arg triads in both gas phase and solvents. The electron transfer isomers are observed for anionic triads, no matter what the solvent is. The difference of distance between two hydrogen bonds is enlarged in solvent as compared to that in gas phase. The electronic effect on IR spectra is distinctive. The tyrosyl fragment tends to be oxidized and the arginine moiety is easier to bind an excess electron. The variations of chemical shift and spin-spin coupling constant are more significant upon electron transfer than upon solvent dielectric constant. The augmentation of solvent dielectric constant stabilizes the system, enhances the difference of isomers, and increases the vertical ionization potential and vertical electron affinity values.

Investigation of an "alternate water supply system" in enzymatic hydrolysis in the processive endocellulase Cel7A from Rasamsonia emersonii by molecular dynamics simulation

Cel7A from Rasamsonia emersonii is one of the processive endocellulases classified under family 7 glycoside hydrolase. Molecular dynamics simulations were carried out to obtain the optimized sliding and hydrolyzing conformations, in which the reducing ends of sugar chains are located on different sites. Hydrogen bonds are investigated to clarify the interactions between protein and substrate in either conformation. Nine hydrogen bonding interactions are identified in the sliding conformation, and six similar interactions are also found correspondingly in the hydrolyzing conformation. In addition, four strong hydrophobic interactions are also determined. The domain cross-correlation map analysis shows movement correlation of protein including autocorrelation between residues. The root mean square fluctuations analysis represents the various flexibilities of different fragment in the two conformations. Comparing the two conformations reveals the water-supply mechanism of selective hydrolysis of cellulose in Cel7A. The mechanism can be described as follow. When the reducing end of substrate slides from the unhydrolyzing site (sliding conformation) to the hydrolyzing site (hydrolyzing conformation), His225 is pushed down and rotated, the rotation leads to the movement of Glu209 with the interstrand hydrogen bonding in β-sheet. It further makes Asp211 close to the hydrolysis center and provides a water molecule bounding on its carboxyl in the previous unhydrolyzing site. After the hydrolysis takes place and the product is excluded from the enzyme, the Asp211 comes back to its initial position. In summary, Asp211 acts as an elevator to transport outer water molecules into the hydrolysis site for every other glycosidic bond.

A kinetic study of Trichoderma reesei Cel7B catalyzed cellulose hydrolysis

One prominent feature of Trichoderma reesei (Tr) endoglucanases catalyzed cellulose hydrolysis is that the reaction slows down quickly after it starts (within minutes). But the mechanism of the slowdown is not well understood. A structural model of Tr- Cel7B catalytic domain bound to cellulose was built computationally and the potentially important binding residues were identified and tested experimentally. The 13 tested mutants show different binding properties in the adsorption to phosphoric acid swollen cellulose and filter paper. Though the partitioning parameter to filter paper is about 10 times smaller than that to phosphoric acid swollen cellulose, a positive correlation is shown for two substrates. The kinetic studies show that the reactions slow down quickly for both substrates. This slowdown is not correlated to the binding constant but anticorrelated to the enzyme initial activity. The amount of reducing sugars released after 24h by Cel7B in phosphoric acid swollen cellulose, Avicel and filter paper cellulose hydrolysis is correlated with the enzyme activity against a soluble substrate p-nitrophenyl lactoside. Six of the 13 tested mutants, including N47A, N52D, S99A, N323D, S324A, and S346A, yield ∼15-35% more reducing sugars than the wild type (WT) Cel7B in phosphoric acid swollen cellulose and filter paper hydrolysis. This study reveals that the slowdown of the reaction is not due to the binding of the enzyme to cellulose. The activity of Tr- Cel7B against the insoluble substrate cellulose is determined by the enzyme's capability in hydrolyzing the soluble substrate.

Improving the activity of Trichoderma reesei cel7B through stabilizing the transition state

Trichoderma reesei (Tr.) cellulases, which convert cellulose to reducing sugars, are a promising catalyst used in the lignocellulosic biofuel production. Improving Tr. cellulases activity, though very difficult, is highly desired due to the recalcitrance of lignocellulose. Meanwhile, it is preferable to enhance the cellulase's promiscuity so that substrates other than cellulose can also be hydrolyzed. In this work, an attempt is made to improve the catalytic activity of a major endogluanase Tr. Cel7B against xylan which crosslinks with cellulose in lignocellulose. By using quantum mechanics/molecular mechanics (QM/MM) molecular dynamics (MD) simulations, the transition state of the xylo-oligosaccharide hydrolysis is identified. Then, mutations are introduced and their effect on the transition state stabilization is ranked based on the free energy calculations. Seven top ranked mutants are evaluated experimentally. Three mutants A208Q, A222D, and G230R show a higher activity than the wild-type Tr. Cel7B in the hydrolysis of xylan (by up to 47%) as well as filter paper (by up to 50%). The combination of the single mutants can further improve the enzyme activity. Our work demonstrates that the free energy method is effective in engineering the Tr. Cel7B activity against xylan and cellulose, and thus may also be useful for improving the activity of other Tr. cellulases. Biotechnol. Bioeng. 2016;113: 1171-1177. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Characterization of the Dielectric Constant in the Trichoderma reesei Cel7B Active Site

An attempt is made to evaluate the dielectric constant of the Trichoderma reesei Cel7B active site. Through kinetic measurements, the pKa value of the catalytic acid E201 is determined. Mutations (away from E201) with net charge changes are introduced to perturb the E201 pKa. It is shown that the mutation with a +1 charge change (including G225R, G230R, and A335R) decreases the pKa of E201, whereas the mutation with a -1 charge change (including Q149E, A222D, G225D, and G230D) increases the pKa. This effect is consistent with the electrostatic interaction between the changed charge and the E201 side chain. The fitting of the experimental data yields an apparent dielectric constant of 25-80. Molecular dynamics simulations with explicit water molecules indicate that the high solvent accessibility of the active site contributes largely to the high dielectric constant. ONIOM calculations show that high dielectric constant benefits the catalysis through decreasing the energy of the transition state relative to that of the enzyme substrate complex.