Random mutagenesis of super Koji (Aspergillus oryzae): improvement in production and thermal stability of α-amylases for maltose syrup production

A novel alkali and thermotolerant protease from Aeromonas spp. retrieved from wastewater

Enzymes are integral to numerous industrial processes, with a growing global demand for various enzyme types. Protease enzymes, in particular, have proven to be cost-effective, stable, and compatible alternatives to traditional chemical processes in both industrial and environmental applications. In this study, an alkaline protease-producing strain of Aeromonas spp. was isolated from a wastewater treatment plant in Iran. The protease production was confirmed by culturing the strain on casein agar medium. The bacterium was identified through morphological, biochemical, and 16 S rRNA sequencing analyses. The optimal culture medium for bacterial growth and enzyme production was obtained using peptone, salt, yeast extract, galactose, and CaCl₂ at an initial pH of 8. Maximum protease production was achieved after 20 h of incubation at 40 °C. To partially purify the enzyme, the supernatant of the bacterial culture medium was first centrifuged, and the enzyme was precipitated using ammonium sulfate, followed by dialysis. Zymography revealed the production of one type of protease during bacterial growth. The partially purified protease exhibited optimal activity at pH 8.5 and maximum stability at pH 9. The optimum temperature for maximum enzyme activity was observed at 50 °C, with 100% residual activity retained for 1 h at 0 °C. The effect of metal ions on enzyme activity was assessed, revealing that KCl induced the most significant effects (p < 0.0001) on enzyme activity. Chemical amino acid modifiers and inhibitors, such as EDTA, DEPSI, and IAA, did not exhibit significant inhibition. In contrast, PMSF and HNBB significantly (p < 0.0001) reduced enzyme activity, suggesting that the enzyme could be classified as a serine protease. The protease also demonstrated high stability in the presence of 2% SDS, showing no signs inactivation. The alkaline pH optimum, thermal stability, and resistance to SDS exhibited by the protease produced by the Aeromonas strain are particularly promising characteristics that warrant further investigation. Based on preliminary tests and the enzyme's characteristics, this protease can be recommended for various applications, pending further studies.

One stone two birds: Endophytes alleviating trace elements accumulation and suppressing soilborne pathogen by stimulating plant growth, photosynthetic potential and defense related gene expression

In the present investigation, we utilized zinc nanoparticles (Zn-NPs) and bacterial endophytes to address the dual challenge of heavy metal (HM) toxicity in soil and Rhizoctonia solani causing root rot disease of tomato. The biocontrol potential of Bacillus subtilis and Bacillus amyloliquefaciens was harnessed, resulting in profound inhibition of R. solani mycelial growth and efficient detoxification of HM through strong production of various hydrolytic enzymes and metabolites. Surprisingly, Zn-NPs exhibited notable efficacy in suppressing mycelial growth and enhancing the seed germination (%) while Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis unveiled key volatile compounds (VOCs) crucial for the inhibition of pathogen. Greenhouse trials underscored significant reduction in the disease severity (%) and augmented biomass in biocontrol-mediated plants by improving photosynthesis-related attributes. Interestingly, Zn-NPs and biocontrol treatments enhanced the antioxidant enzymes and mitigate oxidative stress indicator by increasing H2O2 concentration. Field experiments corroborated these findings, with biocontrol-treated plants, particularly those receiving consortia-mediated treatments, displayed significant reduction in disease severity (%) and enhanced the fruit yield under field conditions. Root analysis confirmed the effective detoxification of HM, highlighting the eco-friendly potential of these endophytes and Zn-NPs as fungicide alternative for sustainable production that foster soil structure, biodiversity and promote plant health.

Challenges and prospects of microbial α-amylases for industrial application: a review

α-Amylases are essential biocatalysts representing a billion-dollar market with significant long-term global demand. They have varied applications ranging from detergent, textile, and food sectors such as bakery to, more recently, biofuel industries. Microbial α-amylases have distinct advantages over their plant and animal counterparts owing to generally good activities and better stability at temperature and pH extremes. With the scope of applications expanding, the need for new and improved α-amylases is ever-growing. However, scaling up microbial α-amylase technology from the laboratory to industry for practical applications is impeded by several issues, ranging from mass transfer limitations, low enzyme yields, and energy-intensive product recovery that adds to high production costs. This review highlights the major challenges and prospects for the production of microbial α-amylases, considering the various avenues of industrial bioprocessing such as culture-independent approaches, nutrient optimization, bioreactor operations with design improvements, and product down-streaming approaches towards developing efficient α-amylases with high activity and recyclability. Since the sequence and structure of the enzyme play a crucial role in modulating its functional properties, we have also tried to analyze the structural composition of microbial α-amylase as a guide to its thermodynamic properties to identify the areas that can be targeted for enhancing the catalytic activity and thermostability of the enzyme through varied immobilization or selective enzyme engineering approaches. Also, the utilization of inexpensive and renewable substrates for enzyme production to isolate α-amylases with non-conventional applications has been briefly discussed.

The latest advances on soy sauce research in the past decade: Emphasis on the advances in China

As an indispensable soybean-fermented condiment, soy sauce is extensively utilized in catering, daily cooking and food industry in East Asia and Southeast Asia and is becoming popular in the whole world. In the past decade, researchers began to pay great importance to the scientific research of soy sauce, which remarkably promoted the advances on fermentation strains, quality, safety, function and other aspects of soy sauce. Of them, the screening and reconstruction of Aspergillus oryzae with high-yield of salt and acid-tolerant proteases, mechanism of soy sauce flavor formation, improvement of soy sauce quality through the combination of novel physical processing technique and microbial/enzyme, separation and identification of soy sauce functional components are attracting more attention of researchers, and related achievements have been reported continually. Meanwhile, we pointed out the drawbacks of the above research and the future research directions based on published literature and our knowledge. We believe that this review can provide an insightful reference for international related researchers to understand the advances on soy sauce research.

Novel Design of an α-Amylase with an N-Terminal CBM20 in Aspergillus niger Improves Binding and Processing of a Broad Range of Starches

In the starch processing industry including the food and pharmaceutical industries, α-amylase is an important enzyme that hydrolyses the α-1,4 glycosidic bonds in starch, producing shorter maltooligosaccharides. In plants, starch molecules are organised in granules that are very compact and rigid. The level of starch granule rigidity affects resistance towards enzymatic hydrolysis, resulting in inefficient starch degradation by industrially available α-amylases. In an approach to enhance starch hydrolysis, the domain architecture of a Glycoside Hydrolase (GH) family 13 α-amylase from Aspergillus niger was engineered. In all fungal GH13 α-amylases that carry a carbohydrate binding domain (CBM), these modules are of the CBM20 family and are located at the C-terminus of the α-amylase domain. To explore the role of the domain order, a new GH13 gene encoding an N-terminal CBM20 domain was designed and found to be fully functional. The starch binding capacity and enzymatic activity of N-terminal CBM20 α-amylase was found to be superior to that of native GH13 without CBM20. Based on the kinetic parameters, the engineered N-terminal CBM20 variant displayed surpassing activity rates compared to the C-terminal CBM20 version for the degradation on a wide range of starches, including the more resistant raw potato starch for which it exhibits a two-fold higher Vmax underscoring the potential of domain engineering for these carbohydrate active enzymes.

Microbial foods for improving human and planetary health

The current food production system is negatively impacting planetary and human health. A transition to a sustainable and fair food system is urgently needed. Microorganisms are likely enablers of this process, as they can produce delicious and healthy microbial foods with low environmental footprints. We review traditional and current approaches to microbial foods, such as fermented foods, microbial biomass, and food ingredients derived from microbial fermentations. We discuss how future advances in science-driven fermentation, synthetic biology, and sustainable feedstocks enable a new generation of microbial foods, potentially impacting the sustainability, resilience, and health effects of our food system.

Isolation and Characterization of Thermophilic Bacteria from Hot Springs in Republic of Korea

Thermophiles that produce extracellular hydrolases are of great importance due to their applications in various industries. Thermophilic enzymes are of interest for industrial applications due to their compatibility with industrial processes, and the availability of the organisms is essential to develop their full potential. In this study, a culture-dependent approach was used to identify thermophilic bacteria from five hot springs in Republic of Korea. Characterization, taxonomic identification, and extracellular hydrolase (amylase, lipase, and protease) activity of 29 thermophilic bacterial isolates from the Neungam carbonate, Mungang sulfur, Deokgu, Baegam, and Dongnae hot springs were investigated. Identification based on the full-length 16S rRNA gene sequence revealed that strains belonged to the phylum Bacillota and were classified as Aeribacillus, Bacillus, Caldibacillus, Geobacillus, and Thermoactinomyces genera. It was found that 22 isolates could produce at least one extracellular enzyme. Geobacillus, representing 41.4% of the isolates, was the most abundant. The highest amount of proteolytic and lipolytic enzymes was secreted by strains of the genus Geobacillus, whereas Caldibacillus species produced the highest amount of amylolytic enzyme. The Geobacillus species producing hydrolytic extracellular enzymes appeared to be the most promising.

Enhancement of Fungal Enzyme Production by Radio-Frequency Electromagnetic Fields

Enzyme production by microorganisms on an industrial scale has demonstrated technical bottlenecks, such as low efficiency in enzyme expression and extracellular secretion. In this study, as a potential tool for overcoming these technical limits, radio-frequency electromagnetic field (RF-EMF) exposure was examined for its possibility to enhance production of an enzyme, α-amylase, in a filamentous fungus, Aspergillus oryzae. The RF-EMF perfectly resonated at 2 GHz with directivity radiation pattern and peak gain of 0.5 dB (0.01 Watt). Total protein concentration and activity of α-amylase measured in media were about 1.5-3-fold higher in the RF-EMF exposed (10 min) sample than control (no RF-EMF) during incubation (the highest increase after 16 h). The level of α-amylase mRNA in cells was approximately 2-8-fold increased 16 and 24 h after RF-EMF exposure for 10 min. An increase in vesicle accumulation within fungal hyphae and the transcription of some genes involved in protein cellular trafficking was observed in RF-EMF-exposed samples. Membrane potential was not changed, but the intracellular Ca2+ level was elevated after RF-EMF exposure. Our results suggest that RF-EMF can increase the extracellular level of fungal total proteins and α-amylase activity and the intracellular level of Ca2+.

Analysis of microbial community structure and volatile compounds in pit mud used for manufacturing Taorong-type Baijiu based on high-throughput sequencing

In this study, the pit mud used in manufacturing Taorong-type Baijiu was collected from the upper, middle, lower and bottom layers of pits at Henan Yangshao Liquor Co., LTD. High-throughput sequencing (HTS) technology was used to analyze the microbial community structure of the pit mud. In addition, the volatile compounds in the pit mud were subjected to preliminary qualitative analysis through headspace-solid phase microextraction and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The HTS results demonstrated that there were 5, 3, 5 and 5 dominant bacterial phyla (including 11, 11, 9 and 8 dominant bacterial genera) and 3, 3, 3 and 3 dominant fungal phyla (including 4, 7, 7 and 5 dominant fungal genera) in the pit mud from the F-S (upper), G-Z (middle), H-X (lower) and I-D (bottom) layers, respectively. In the qualitative analysis of the volatile compounds, a total of 77types of volatile compounds were detected in the pit mud, including 46, 45, 39 and 49 types in the pit mud from layers F-S, G-Z, H-X and I-D, respectively. Esters and acids were the two main components of the pit mud. The correlation between the microorganisms present and the main volatile compounds in the pit mud was analyzed. Lentimicrobium, Syner-01 and Blvii28_wastewater-sludge groups were found for the first time in pit mud used for manufacturing Taorong-type Baijiu. The findings of this study could provide a theoretical foundation for improving the quality of pit mud and the flavor of Taorong-type Baijiu.

A turning point in the bacterial nanocellulose production employing low doses of gamma radiation

In the recent years, huge efforts have been conducted to conceive a cost-effective production process of the bacterial nanocellulose (BNC), thanks to its marvelous properties and broadening applications. Herein, we unveiled the impact of gamma irradiation on the BNC yield by a novel bacterial strain Komagataeibacter hansenii KO28 which was exposed to different irradiation doses via a designed scheme, where the productivity and the structural properties of the BNC were inspected. After incubation for 240 h, the highest BNC yield was perceived from the culture treated twice with 0.5 kGy, recording about 475% higher than the control culture. Furthermore, almost 92% of its BNC yield emerged in the first six days. The physicochemical characteristics of the BNCs were investigated adopting scanning electron microscope (SEM), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR). Additionally, the water holding capacity, water release rate, surface area (BET), and mechanical properties were configured for the BNC generated from the control and the irradiated cultures. As a whole, there were no significant variations in the properties of the BNC produced by the irradiated cultures versus the control, proposing the strain irradiation as a valuable, facile, and cheap route to augment the BNC yield.

Production and characterization of psychrophilic α-amylase from a psychrophilic bacterium, Shewanella sp. ISTPL2

A psychrophilic and halophilic bacterial isolate, Shewanella sp. ISTPL2, procured from the pristine Pangong Lake, Ladakh, Jammu and Kashmir, India, was used for the production and characterization of the psychrophilic and alkalophilic α-amylase enzyme. The α-amylase is a critical enzyme that catalyses the hydrolysis of α-1,4-glycosidic bonds of starch molecules and is predominately utilized in biotechnological applications. The highest enzyme activity of partially purified extracellular α-amylase was 10,064.20 U/mL after 12 h of incubation in a shake flask at pH 6.9 and 10 °C. Moreover, the maximum intracellular α-amylase enzyme activity (259.62 U/mL) was also observed at 6 h of incubation. The extracellular α-amylase was refined to the homogeneity with the specific enzyme activity of 36,690.47 U/mg protein corresponding to 6.87-fold purification. The optimized pH and temperature for the α-amylase were found to be pH 8 and 4 °C, respectively, suggesting its stability at alkaline conditions and low or higher temperatures. The amylase activity was highly activated by Cu2+, Fe2+ and Ca2+, while inhibited by Cd2+, Co2+ and Na2+. As per our knowledge, the current study reports the highest activity of a psychrophilic α-amylase enzyme providing prominent biotechnological potential.

Hydrolytic Exoenzymes Produced by Bacteria Isolated and Identified From the Gastrointestinal Tract of Bombay Duck

Bacteria producing hydrolytic exoenzymes are of great importance considering their contribution to the host metabolism as well as for their various applications in industrial bioprocesses. In this work hydrolytic capacity of bacteria isolated from the gastrointestinal tract of Bombay duck (Harpadon nehereus) was analyzed and the enzyme-producing bacteria were genetically characterized. A total of twenty gut-associated bacteria, classified into seventeen different species, were isolated and screened for the production of protease, lipase, pectinase, cellulase and amylase enzymes. It was found that thirteen of the isolates could produce at least one of these hydrolytic enzymes among which protease was the most common enzyme detected in ten isolates; lipase in nine, pectinase in four, and cellulase and amylase in one isolate each. This enzymatic array strongly correlated to the previously reported eating behavior of Bombay duck. 16S rRNA gene sequence-based taxonomic classification of the enzyme-producing isolates revealed that the thirteen isolates were grouped into three different classes of bacteria consisting of eight different genera. Staphylococcus, representing ∼46% of the isolates, was the most dominant genus. Measurement of enzyme-production via agar diffusion technique revealed that one of the isolates which belonged to the genus Exiguobacterium, secreted the highest amount of lipolytic and pectinolytic enzymes, whereas a Staphylococcus species produced highest proteolytic activity. The Exiguobacterium sp. expressing a maximum of four hydrolases, appeared to be the most promising isolate of all.

Thermozymes: Adaptive strategies and tools for their biotechnological applications

In today's scenario of global climate change, there is a colossal demand for sustainable industrial processes and enzymes from thermophiles. Plausibly, thermozymes are an important toolkit, as they are known to be polyextremophilic in nature. Small genome size and diverse molecular conformational modifications have been implicated in devising adaptive strategies. Besides, the utilization of chemical technology and gene editing attributions according to mechanical necessities are the additional key factor for efficacious bioprocess development. Microbial thermozymes have been extensively used in waste management, biofuel, food, paper, detergent, medicinal and pharmaceutical industries. To understand the strength of enzymes at higher temperatures different models utilize X-ray structures of thermostable proteins, machine learning calculations, neural networks, but unified adaptive measures are yet to be totally comprehended. The present review provides a recent updates on thermozymes and various interdisciplinary applications including the aspects of thermophiles bioengineering utilizing synthetic biology and gene editing tools.

AmyZ1: a novel α-amylase from marine bacterium Pontibacillus sp. ZY with high activity toward raw starches

BACKGROUND

Starch is an inexpensive and renewable raw material for numerous industrial applications. However, most starch-based products are not cost-efficient due to high-energy input needed in traditional enzymatic starch conversion processes. Therefore, α-amylase with high efficiency to directly hydrolyze high concentration raw starches at a relatively lower temperature will have a profound impact on the efficient application of starch.

RESULTS

A novel raw starch digesting α-amylase (named AmyZ1) was screened and cloned from a deep-sea bacterium Pontibacillus sp. ZY. Phylogenetic analysis showed that AmyZ1 was a member of subfamily 5 of glycoside hydrolase family 13. When expressed in Escherichia coli, the recombinant AmyZ1 showed high activity at pH 6.0-7.5 and 25-50 °C. Its optimal pH and temperature were 7.0 and 35 °C, respectively. Similar to most α-amylases, AmyZ1 activity was enhanced (2.4-fold) by 1.0 mM Ca²⁺. Its half-life time at 35 °C was also extended from about 10 min to 100 min. In comparison, AmyZ1 showed a broad substrate specificity toward raw starches, including those derived from rice, corn, and wheat. The specific activity of AmyZ1 towards raw rice starch was 12,621 ± 196 U/mg, much higher than other reported raw starch hydrolases. When used in raw starch hydrolyzing process, AmyZ1 hydrolyzed 52%, 47% and 38% of 30% (w/v) rice, corn, and wheat starch after 4 h incubation. It can also hydrolyze marine raw starch derived from Chlorella pyrenoidosa, resulting in 50.9 mg/g DW (dry weight of the biomass) of reducing sugars after 4 h incubation at 35 °C. Furthermore, when hydrolyzing raw corn starch using the combination of AmyZ1 and commercial glucoamylase, the hydrolysis rate reached 75% after 4.5 h reaction, notably higher than that obtained in existing starch-processing industries.

CONCLUSIONS

As a novel raw starch-digesting α-amylase with high specific activity, AmyZ1 efficiently hydrolyzed raw starches derived from both terrestrial and marine environments at near ambient temperature, suggesting its application potential in starch-based industrial processes.