β-Galactosidase from Penicillium canescens. Properties and immobilization

Cloning, Expression, Purification, and Characterization of β-Galactosidase from Bifidobacterium longum and Bifidobacterium pseudocatenulatum

Expression and purification of β-galactosidases derived from Bifidobacterium provide a new resource for efficient lactose hydrolysis and lactose intolerance alleviation. Here, we cloned and expressed two β-galactosidases derived from Bifidobacterium. The optimal pH for BLGLB1 was 5.5, and the optimal temperature was 45 °C, at which the enzyme activity of BLGLB1 was higher than that of commercial enzyme E (300 ± 3.6 U/mg) under its optimal conditions, reaching 2200 ± 15 U/mg. The optimal pH and temperature for BPGLB1 were 6.0 and 45 °C, respectively, and the enzyme activity (0.58 ± 0.03 U/mg) under optimum conditions was significantly lower than that of BLGLB1. The structures of the two β-galactosidase were similar, with all known key sites conserved. When o-nitrophenyl-β-D-galactoside (oNPG) was used as an enzyme reaction substrate, the maximum reaction velocity (Vmax) for BLGLB1 and BPGLB1 was 3700 ± 100 U/mg and 1.1 ± 0.1 U/mg, respectively. The kinetic constant (Km) of BLGLB1 and BPGLB1 was 1.9 ± 0.1 and 1.3 ± 0.3 mmol/L, respectively. The respective catalytic constant (kcat) of BLGLB1 and BPGLB1 was 1700 ± 40 s−1 and 0.5 ± 0.02 s−1, respectively; the respective kcat/Km value of BLGLB1 and BPGLB1 was 870 L/(mmol∙s) and 0.36 L/(mmol∙s), respectively. The Km, kcat and Vmax values of BLGLB1 were superior to those of earlier reported β-galactosidase derived from Bifidobacterium. Overall, BLGLB1 has potential application in the food industry.

An Innovative Biocatalyst for Continuous 2G Ethanol Production from Xylo-Oligomers by Saccharomyces cerevisiae through Simultaneous Hydrolysis, Isomerization, and Fermentation (SHIF)

Many approaches have been considered aimed at ethanol production from the hemicellulosic fraction of biomass. However, the industrial implementation of this process has been hindered by some bottlenecks, one of the most important being the ease of contamination of the bioreactor by bacteria that metabolize xylose. This work focuses on overcoming this problem through the fermentation of xylulose (the xylose isomer) by native Saccharomyces cerevisiae using xylo-oligomers as substrate. A new concept of biocatalyst is proposed, containing xylanases and xylose isomerase (XI) covalently immobilized on chitosan, and co-encapsulated with industrial baker’s yeast in Ca-alginate gel spherical particles. Xylo-oligomers are hydrolyzed, xylose is isomerized, and finally xylulose is fermented to ethanol, all taking place simultaneously, in a process called simultaneous hydrolysis, isomerization, and fermentation (SHIF). Among several tested xylanases, Multifect CX XL A03139 was selected to compose the biocatalyst bead. Influences of pH, Ca2+, and Mg2+ concentrations on the isomerization step were assessed. Experiments of SHIF using birchwood xylan resulted in an ethanol yield of 0.39 g/g, (76% of the theoretical), selectivity of 3.12 gethanol/gxylitol, and ethanol productivity of 0.26 g/L/h.

Chitosan hydrogel microspheres: an effective covalent matrix for crosslinking of soluble dextranase to increase stability and recycling efficiency

Dextranase is a unique biocatalyst that has high specificity and stereo-selectivity towards a complex biopolymer known as dextran. Dextranase has wide industrial application, but most of the time harsh environmental conditions adversely affect the functionality and stability of the enzyme. To overcome this issue, a covalent cross-linking immobilization method was adapted in the current study utilizing a nontoxic and biocompatible matrix known as chitosan. Chitosan hydrogel microspheres were synthesized using chitosan which exhibited noteworthy physical and mechanical strength. After treatment with glutaraldehyde, chitosan hydrogel microspheres were used for immobilization of dextranase. The kinetic characteristics of immobilized dextranase were compared with that of the soluble enzyme. A shift in optimum pH and temperature from 7.0 to 7.5 and 50 to 60 °C was observed after immobilization, respectively. Recycling efficiency, thermal stability, and activation energy distinctly improved after immobilization, whereas anchoring of substrate at the active site of the soluble dextranase exhibited an increase in K _m with no change in V _max after crosslinking. This technique involves the reduction in the size of carrier molecules (microspheres) that provide a larger surface area for improved immobilization efficiency. Therefore, it is concluded that increased stability and reusability of this immobilized biocatalyst makes it a promising aspirant for the utilization at commercial level.

An innovative biocatalyst for production of ethanol from xylose in a continuous bioreactor

The use of the hemicellulose fraction of biomass may be important for the feasibility of the production of second generation bioethanol. Wild strains of Saccharomyces cerevisiae are widely used in industry for production of 1st generation ethanol, and the robustness of this yeast is an important advantage in large scale applications. Isomerization of xylose to xylulose is an essential step in this process. This reaction is catalyzed by glucose isomerase (GI). A new biocatalyst is presented here for the simultaneous isomerization and fermentation (SIF) of xylose. GI from Streptomyces rubiginosus was immobilized in chitosan, through crosslinking with glutaraldehyde, and the support containing the immobilized GI (IGI-Ch) was co-immobilized with S. cerevisiae, in calcium alginate gel. The immobilization experiments led to high immobilized protein loads (30-68 mg × g(support)(-1)), high yields (circa of 100%) and high recovered enzyme activity (>90%). The IGI-Ch derivative with maximum activity presented 1700 IU × g(catalyst)(-1), almost twice the activity of a commercial immobilized GI, GENSWEET(®) IGI-HF. At typical operational conditions for xylose SIF operation (pH 5, 30-35 °C, presence of nutrients and ethanol concentrations in the medium up to 70 L(-1)), both derivatives, IGI-Ch and GENSWEET(®) IGI-HF retained app. 90% of the initial activity after 120 h, while soluble GI was almost completely inactive at pH 5, 30 °C. The isomerization xylose/xylulose, catalyzed by IGI-Ch, reached the equilibrium in batch experiments after 4h, with 12,000 IU × L(-1) (7 g(der) × L(-1)), at pH 5 and 30 °C, in the presence of fermentation nutrients. After co-immobilization of IGI-Ch with yeast in alginate gel, this biocatalyst succeeded in producing 12 g × L(-1) of ethanol, 9.5 g × L(-1) of xylitol, 2.5 g × L(-1) of glycerol and 1.9 g × L(-1) of acetate after consumption of 50 g × L(-1) of xylose, in 48 h, using 32.5 × 10(3) IU × L(-1) and 20 g(yeast) × L(-1), at 35 °C and initial pH 5.3.