Immobilization of the Antarctic Bacillus sp. LX-1 α-Galactosidase on Eudragit L-100 for the Production of a Functional Feed Additive

Heterologous Expression of a Thermostable α-Galactosidase from Parageobacillus thermoglucosidasius Isolated from the Lignocellulolytic Microbial Consortium TMC7

α-Galactosidase is a debranching enzyme widely used in the food, feed, paper, and pharmaceuticals industries and plays an important role in hemicellulose degradation. Here, T26, an aerobic bacterial strain with thermostable α-galactosidase activity, was isolated from laboratory-preserved lignocellulolytic microbial consortium TMC7, and identified as Parageobacillus thermoglucosidasius. The α-galactosidase, called T26GAL and derived from the T26 culture supernatant, exhibited a maximum enzyme activity of 0.4976 IU/ml when cultured at 60°C and 180 rpm for 2 days. Bioinformatics analysis revealed that the α-galactosidase T26GAL belongs to the GH36 family. Subsequently, the pET-26 vector was used for the heterologous expression of the T26 α-galactosidase gene in Escherichia coli BL21 (DE3). The optimum pH for α-galactosidase T26GAL was determined to be 8.0, while the optimum temperature was 60°C. In addition, T26GAL demonstrated a remarkable thermostability with more than 93% enzyme activity, even at a high temperature of 90°C. Furthermore, Ca2+ and Mg2+ promoted the activity of T26GAL while Zn2+ and Cu2+ inhibited it. The substrate specificity studies revealed that T26GAL efficiently degraded raffinose, stachyose, and guar gum, but not locust bean gum. This study thus facilitated the discovery of an effective heat-resistant α-galactosidase with potent industrial application. Meanwhile, as part of our research on lignocellulose degradation by a microbial consortium, the present work provides an important basis for encouraging further investigation into this enzyme complex.

Enhanced elimination of non-digestible oligosaccharides from soy milk by immobilized α-galactosidase: A comparative analysis

This study compared two immobilization matrices like calcium-alginate and chitosan for immobilization of α-galactosidase and evaluated their potential for the removal of non-digestible raffinose family oligosaccharides from soy milk which cause abdominal discomfort. The pH optima of the free and immobilized enzymes were found to be similar at pH 4.0. The chitosan-immobilized α-galactosidase displayed higher optimal temperature (60°C) compared to alginate-immobilized enzyme (45°C) and free enzyme (50°C). The chitosan-immobilized and alginate-immobilized α-galactosidases displayed 93.7% and 97.6% hydrolysis of raffinose family oligosaccharides, respectively, while the free enzyme hydrolyzed only 30.3% oligosaccharides present in soy milk in 4 hr. Remarkably, both the immobilized enzymes showed complete removal of raffinose family oligosaccharides in 8 hr. Moreover, reusability studies indicate that even after five cycles of reuse, the chitosan and alginate-immobilized enzymes displayed 99% and 60% hydrolysis, respectively. PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS: In this study, we have used two inexpensive and non-toxic matrices for immobilizing α-galactosidase. We report that entrapment of α-galactosidase with chitosan significantly improved the optimal temperature of α-galactosidase, which is advantageous in food industry. The hydrolysis of raffinose family oligosaccharides in soy milk was also greatly enhanced after immobilization with chitosan and alginate. Thus, the results described in this study have relevance for development of safe, cost-effective and efficient method for removal of non-digestible soy oligosaccharides in food industry.

An update on smart biocatalysts for industrial and biomedical applications

Recently, smart biocatalysts, where enzymes are conjugated to stimuli-responsive (smart) polymers, have gained significant attention. Based on the presence or absence of external stimuli, the polymer attached to the enzyme changes its conformation to protect the enzyme from the external environment and regulate the enzyme activity, thus acting as a molecular switch. Owing to this behaviour, smart biocatalysts can be separated easily from a reaction mixture and re-used several times. Several such smart polymer-based biocatalysts have been developed for industrial and biomedical applications. In addition, they have been used in biosensors, biometrics and nano-electronic devices. This review article covers recent advances in developing different kinds of stimuli-responsive enzyme bioconjugates, including conjugation strategies, and their applications.

A Fungal α-Galactosidase from Tricholoma matsutake with Broad Substrate Specificity and Good Hydrolytic Activity on Raffinose Family Oligosaccharides

An acidic α-galactosidase designated as TMG was purified from the fruiting bodies The purification protocol entailed ion exchange chromatography on Q-Sepharose and of Tricholoma matsutake with 136-fold purification and a specific activity of 909 units/mg. Mono-Q and fast protein liquid chromatography on Superdex 75. TMG is a monomeric protein exhibiting a molecular mass of 47 kDa in SDS-PAGE and gel filtration. The purified enzyme was identified by LC-MS/MS and three inner amino acid sequences were obtained. The optimum pH and temperature for TMG with pNPGal as substrate were pH 4.5 and 55 °C, respectively. The α-galactosidase activity was strongly inhibited by K+, Ca2+, Cd2+, Hg2+, Ag+ and Zn2+ ions. The enzyme activity was inhibited by the chemical modification agent N-bromosuccinimide (NBS), indicating the importance of tryptophan residue(s) at or near the active site. Besides hydrolyzing pNPGal, TMG also efficaciously catalyzed the degradation of natural substrates such as stachyose, raffinose, and melibiose. Thus TMG can be exploited commercially for improving the nutritional value of soy milk by degradation of indigestible oligosaccharides.