Biophysical and Biochemical Characterization of a Hyperthermostable and Ca<Superscript>2+</Superscript>-independent α-Amylase of an Extreme Thermophile <Emphasis Type="Italic">Geobacillus thermoleovorans</Emphasis>

alpha-Amylases reported from various microbial sources have been shown to be moderately thermostable and Ca2+ dependent. The bacterial strain used in this investigation is an extremely thermophilic bacterium Geobacillus thermoleovorans that produces a novel alpha-amylase (26 kDa; alpha-amylase gt), which is hyperthermostable (Topt 100 degrees C) and does not require Ca2+ for its activity/stability. These special features of alpha-amylase gt make it applicable in starch saccharification process. The structural aspects of alpha-amylase gt are, therefore, of significant interest to understand its structure-function relationship. The circular dichroism spectroscopic data revealed the native alpha-amylase gt to contain 25% alpha-helix, 21% beta-sheet, and 54% random coils. The addition of urea, at high concentration (8 M), appeared to expose the buried Trp residues of the native alpha-amylase gt to the aqueous environment and thus showed low fluorophore. Fluorescence-quenching experiments using KI, CsCl, N-bromosuccinimide, and acrylamide revealed interesting features of the tryptophan microenvironment. Analysis of Ksv and fa values of KI, CsCl, and acrylamide suggested the overall Trp microenvironment in alpha-amylase to be slightly electropositive. Fluorescence-quenching studies with acrylamide revealed the occurrence of both collisional as well as static quenching processes. There was no change in the alpha-helix content or the enzyme activity with an increase in temperature (60-100 degrees C) that suggested a critical role of the alpha-helix content in maintaining the catalytic activity.     

Cloning and Characterization of Cold-Adapted α-Amylase from Antarctic <Emphasis Type="Italic">Arthrobacter agilis</Emphasis>

In this study, the gene encoding an α-amylase from a psychrophilic Arthrobacter agilis PAMC 27388 strain was cloned into a pET-28a(+) vector and heterologously expressed in Escherichia coli BL21(DE3). The recombinant α-amylase with a molecular mass of about 80 kDa was purified by using Ni²⁺-NTA affinity chromatography. This recombinant α-amylase exhibited optimal activity at pH 3.0 and 30 °C and was highly stable at varying temperatures (30–60 °C) and within the pH range of 4.0–8.0. Furthermore, α-amylase activity was enhanced in the presence of FeCl₃ (1 mM) and β-mercaptoethanol (5 mM), while CoCl₂ (1 mM), ammonium persulfate (5 mM), SDS (10 %), Triton X-100 (10 %), and urea (1 %) inhibited the enzymatic activity. Importantly, the presence of Ca²⁺ ions and phenylmethylsulfonyl fluoride (PMSF) did not affect enzymatic activity. Thin layer chromatography (TLC) analysis showed that recombinant A. agilis α-amylase hydrolyzed starch, maltotetraose, and maltotriose, producing maltose as the major end product. These results make recombinant A. agilis α-amylase an attractive potential candidate for industrial applications in the textile, paper, detergent, and pharmaceutical industries.     

Gene Cloning,Heterologous Expression,and Characterization of a High Maltose-Producing α-Amylase of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Rhizopus oryzae</Emphasis>

A putative α-amylase gene, designated as RoAmy, was cloned from Rhizopus oryzae. The deduced amino acid sequence showed the highest (42.8%) similarity to the α-amylase from Trichoderma viride. The RoAmy gene was successfully expressed in Pichia pastoris GS115 under the induction of methanol. The molecular weight of the purified RoAmy determined by sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis was approximately 48 kDa. The optimal pH and temperature were 4–6 and 60 °C, respectively. The enzyme was stable at pH ranges of 4.5–6.5 and temperatures below 50 °C. Purified RoAmy had a K _m and V _max of 0.27 mg/ml and 0.068 mg/min, respectively, with a specific activity of 1,123 U/mg on soluble starch. Amylase activity was strongly inhibited by 5 mM Cu²⁺ and 5 mM Fe²⁺, whereas 5 mM Ca²⁺ showed no significant effect. The RoAmy hydrolytic activity was the highest on wheat starch but showed only 55% activity on amylopectin relative to soluble corn starch, while the pullulanase activity was negligible. The main end products of the polysaccharides tested were glucose and maltose. Maltose reached a concentration of 74% (w/w) with potato starch as the substrate. The enzyme had an extremely high affinity (K _m = 0.22 mM) to maltotriose. A high ratio of glucose/maltose of 1:4 was obtained when maltotriose was used at an initial concentration of 40 mM.     

Purification and characterization of α-amylase from <Emphasis Type="Italic">Trichoderma pseudokoningii</Emphasis>

Background

Previous studies have demonstrated that members of Trichoderma are able to generate appreciable amount of extracellular amylase and glucoamylase on soluble potato starch. In this study the α-amylase was purified and characterized from Trichoderma pseudokoningii grown on orange peel under solid state fermentation (SSF).

Results

Five α-amylases A1-A5 from Trichodrma pseudokoningii were separated on DEAE-Sepharose column. The homogeneity of α-amylase A4 was detected after chromatography on Sephacryl S-200. α-Amylase A4 had molecular weight of 30 kDa by Sephacryl S-200 and SDS-PAGE. The enzyme had a broad pH optimum ranged from 4.5 to 8.5. The optimum temperature of A4 was 50 °C with high retention of its activity from 30 to 80 °C. The thermal stability of A4 was detected up to 50 °C and the enzyme was highly stable till 80 °C after 1 h incubation. All substrate analogues tested had amylase activity toward A4 ranged from 12 to 100% of its initial activity. The Km and Vmax values of A4 were 4 mg starch/ml and 0.74 μmol reducing sugar, respectively. The most of metals tested caused moderate inhibitory effect, except of Ca²⁺ and Mg²⁺ enhanced the activity. Hg²⁺ and Cd^+?2 strongly inhibited the activity of A4. EDTA as metal chelator caused strong inhibitory effect.

Conclusions

The properties of the purified α-amylase A4 from T. pseudokoningii meet the prerequisites needed for several applications.

     

Spectroscopic and electrical characterization of <Emphasis Type="Italic">α</Emphasis>,<Emphasis Type="Italic">γ</Emphasis>-bisdiphenylene-<Emphasis Type="Italic">β</Emphasis>-phenylallyl radical as an organic semiconductor

The semiconductor properties of the earliest known stable radical, α,γ-bisdiphenylene-β-phenylallyl radical (Koelsch radical, 1^?) were assessed using spectroscopic and electrical techniques. This radical undergoes reversible redox processes, and it has low redox potentials. In addition, 1^? possesses long wavelength absorption bands, owing to the existence of a singly-occupied molecular orbital whose energy level lies between those of the HOMO and LUMO. A spin-coated thin-film of 1^? displays photocurrent and an electron mobility of 6.3 × 10^?7 cm² V^?1 s^?1 on a trially-fabricated organic field effect transistor.     

Engineering of a <Emphasis Type="Italic">Bacillus</Emphasis> α-Amylase with Improved Thermostability and Calcium Independency

Successful industrial use of amylases requires that they are sufficiently stable and active at application conditions, e.g., at high temperature in starch-liquefaction process. In the present study, site-directed mutagenesis was used to enhance the thermal stability and calcium independency of a mesophilic α-amylase from Bacillus megaterium WHO. Mutations (A53S and H58I) were designed at the calcium-binding site based on the sequence alignment. Kinetic and thermostability parameters of the mutants were analyzed and compared with that of the wild type. In the presence of calcium, the affinity of the enzymes (wild type and mutants) toward starch was increased. In comparison to the wild type, calcium ion had more effect on the catalytic efficiency, k _cat/K _m, and half-life (at 60 °C) of A53S mutant. In A53S, the dependence of half-life on calcium concentration showed that the enhanced calcium binding is likely to be responsible for the increased stability. In contrast, calcium-independent mutant (H58I) possessed high thermostability. In addition, thermodynamic parameters of amylolytic reaction exhibited an increase in the activation energy and the entropy of the system. Kinetics of irreversible thermal inactivation suggests that the activation energy increased by 1.4-fold in the most stable variant.     

<Emphasis Type="Italic">N</Emphasis>′-tetrazolylmethoxyl derivatives of <Emphasis Type="Italic">N</Emphasis>-methyldiazene <Emphasis Type="Italic">N</Emphasis>-oxides

A preparation method was developed for previously unknown tetrazole derivatives containing in the 1, 2, and/or 5 positions of the tetrazole ring N-methyldiazene-N-oxide-N′-oxymethyl groups.     

10<Emphasis Type="Italic">α</Emphasis>-Hydroxy-<Emphasis Type="Italic">β</Emphasis>-isomorphine,a by-product of the synthesis of 10<Emphasis Type="Italic">α</Emphasis>-hydroxymorphine

Abstract  A new compound was isolated from the reaction mixture after O-demethylation of 6-O-acetyl-10α-acetoxycodeine with boron tribromide. The structure of this compound, 10α-hydroxy-β-isomorphine, was elucidated by spectral data, and its spatial arrangement was deduced from an NOE experiment. Capillary zone electrophoresis was used for separation of morphine and its 10-hydroxy analogues. Graphical abstract        

Purification and Characterization of Thermostable α-Galactosidase from <Emphasis Type="Italic">Aspergillus terreus</Emphasis><Subscript>GR</Subscript>

An extracellular thermostable α-galactosidase producing Aspergillus terreus _GR strain was isolated from soil sample using guar gum as sole source of carbon. It was purified to apparent homogeneity by acetone precipitation, gel filtration followed by DEAE-Sephacel chromatographic step. The purified enzyme showed a single band after sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE). The molecular weight of the purified enzyme after SDS-PAGE was 108 kDa. The enzyme showed optimum pH and temperature of 5.0 and 65 °C, respectively, for artificial substrate pNPαGal. α-Galactosidase from A. terreus _GR is found to be thermostable, as it was not inactivated after heating at 65 °C for 40 min. The K _m for pNPαGal, oNPαGal, raffinose, and stachyose are 0.1, 0.28, 0.42, and 0.33 mM, respectively. Inhibitors such as 1,10-phenanthroline, phenylmethylsulfonyl fluoride, ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid, mercaptoethanol, and urea have no effect, whereas N-bromosuccinamide inhibited enzyme activity by 100%. Among metal ions tested, Mg²⁺, Ni²⁺, Ca²⁺, Co²⁺, and Mn²⁺ had no effect on enzyme activity, but Ag⁺, Hg²⁺, and Cu²⁺ have inhibited complete activity.     

Directed Aminomethylation of Pyrrole,Indole, and Carbazole with <Emphasis Type="Italic">N</Emphasis>,<Emphasis Type="Italic">N</Emphasis>,<Emphasis Type="Italic">N′</Emphasis>,<Emphasis Type="Italic">N′</Emphasis>-Tetramethylmethanediamine

Catalytic aminomethylation of pyrrole and indole with N,N,N′,N′-tetramethylmethanediamine in the presence of 5 mol % of ZrOCl₂·8H₂O proceeds selectively at the positions 2, 5 of pyrrole and 1, 3 of indole. Carbazole under the same conditions affords 3-formyl-9-aminomethyl derivative. The reaction in the presence of 5 mol % of K₂CO₃ occurs as monoaminomethylation: for pyrrole at the position 2, for indole at the position 3, and for carbazole at the nitrogen atom of the substrate. Water-soluble 1,1′-(1H-pyrrole-2,5-diyl)bis(N,N-dimethylmethanamine) exhibits a fungistatic activity with respect to phytopathogenic fungi Rhizoctonia solani.     

Recognition of <Emphasis Type="Italic">R</Emphasis>- and <Emphasis Type="Italic">S</Emphasis>-Isomers of α-Alanine by Chiral Nanotubes

DFT PBE/3ζ study of relative stability of the R- and S-isomers of α-alanine in open carbon nanotubes with chirality indices (5,5), P,M-(5,1) and P,M-(5,2) has shown that the encapsulated molecule of the amino acid notably changes its geometrical and electronic characteristics. Besides, for the clusters α-alanine@nano (5,2) the most stable are practically degenerate in energy adducts S-alanine@P-(5,2) and R-alanine@М-(5,2). All this indicates the ability of chiral nanotubes to recognize encapsulated molecules of the R- and S-isomers.     

Purification and Characterization of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Aspergillus terreus</Emphasis> α-Galactosidases and Their Use for Hydrolysis of Soymilk Oligosaccharides

α-Galactosidases has the potential to hydrolyze α-1-6 linkages in raffinose family oligosaccharides (RFO). Aspergillus terreus cells cultivated on wheat bran produced three extracellular forms of α-galactosidases (E1, E2, and E3). E1 and E2 α-galactosidases presented maximal activities at pH 5, while E3 α-galactosidase was more active at pH 5.5. The E1 and E2 enzymes showed stability for 6 h at pH 4–7. Maximal activities were determined at 60, 55, and 50°C, for E1, E2, and E3 α-galactosidase, respectively. E2 α-galactosidase retained 90% of its initial activity after 70 h at 50°C. The enzymes hydrolyzed ρNPGal, melibiose, raffinose and stachyose, and E1 and E2 enzymes were able to hydrolyze guar gum and locust bean gum substrates. E1 and E3 α-galactosidases were completely inhibited by Hg²⁺, Ag⁺, and Cu²⁺. The treatment of RFO present in soy milk with the enzymes showed that E1 α-galactosidase reduced the stachyose content to zero after 12 h of reaction, while E2 promoted total hydrolysis of raffinose. The complete removal of the oligosaccharides in soy milk could be reached by synergistic action of both enzymes     

Expression of a Glucose-tolerant β-glucosidase from <Emphasis Type="Italic">Humicola grisea</Emphasis> var. <Emphasis Type="Italic">thermoidea</Emphasis> in <Emphasis Type="Italic">Saccharomyces cerevisiae</Emphasis>

A β-glucosidase gene (bgl4) from Humicola grisea var thermoidea was successfully expressed in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The recombinant protein (BGL4 ^Sc ) was initially detected associated with yeast cells and later in the culture medium. BGL4 ^Sc showed optimal pH and temperature of 6.0 and 40 °C, respectively, and an apparent molecular mass of 57 kDa. The enzyme showed activity against cellobiose and synthetic substrates, and was inhibited more than 80% by Fe²⁺, Cu²⁺, Zn²⁺, and Al³⁺. Using p-nitrophenyl-β-d-glucopyranoside (pNPG) as substrate, BGL4 ^Sc presented a V _max of 6.72 μmol min⁻¹ mg total protein⁻¹ and a K _m of 0.16 mM under optimal conditions. Most important, BGL4 ^Sc is resistant to inhibition by glucose and the calculated K _i value for this sugar is 70 mM. This feature prompts BLG4 ^Sc as an ideal enzyme to be used in the saccharification process of lignocellulosic materials for ethanol production.     

Synthesis of 20<Emphasis Type="Italic">S</Emphasis>-protopanaxadiol <Emphasis Type="Italic">β</Emphasis>-D-galactopyranosides

20S-Protopanaxadiol (3β,12β,20S-trihydroxydammar-24-ene) 3-, 12-, and 20-O-β-D-galactopyranosides were synthesized for the first time. Condensation of 12β-acetoxy-3β,20S-dihydroxydammar-24-ene (1) and 2,3,4,6-tetra-O-acetyl-α-D-galactopyranosylbromide (α-acetobromogalactose) (2) under Koenigs–Knorr conditions with subsequent removal of the protecting groups resulted in regio- and stereoselective formation of 20S-protopanaxadiol 3-O-β-D-galactopyranoside, an analog of the natural ginsenoside Rh₂. Glycosylation of 12β,20S-dihydroxydammar-24-en-3-one (5) by 2 with subsequent treatment of the reaction products with NaBH₄ in isopropanol and deacetylation with NaOMe gave 20S-protopanaxadiol 12- and 20-O-β-Dgalactopyranosides.     

Synthesis of <Emphasis Type="Italic">α</Emphasis>-chloropyridine derivatives of <Emphasis Type="Italic">γ</Emphasis>-aminobutyric acid

The sodium salt of N-(6-chloronicotinoyl)-γ-aminobutyric acid, a structural analog of the known nootropic and vasidilating drug picamilon, was synthesized via Schotten–Baumann acylation of γ-aminobutyric acid with 6-chloronicotinoyl chloride and subsequent neutralization of the N-(6-chloronicotinoyl)-γ-aminobutyric acid that was obtained in >60% yield.     

1,3-Diamino-2-Hydroxypropane-<Emphasis Type="Italic">N</Emphasis>,<Emphasis Type="Italic">N</Emphasis>,<Emphasis Type="Italic">N</Emphasis>′,<Emphasis Type="Italic">N</Emphasis>′-Tetraacetic Acid: Crystal and Molecular Structures

The synthesis, IR spectroscopic study, and X-ray diffraction analysis (CIF file CCDC no. 1574078) are carried out for 1,3-diamino-2-hydroxypropane-N,N,N′,N′-tetraacetic acid (I). The structural units of a crystal of compound I are (H_4.5HPdta)^0.5– anions, (H_5.5HPdta)^0.5+ cations, and molecules of water of crystallization joined by a branched network of hydrogen bonds: strong intermolecular O–H…O and intramolecular N–H…O bonds.     

Complex formation of magnesium and calcium ions with trimethylenediamine-<Emphasis Type="Italic">N</Emphasis>,<Emphasis Type="Italic">N</Emphasis>,<Emphasis Type="Italic">N</Emphasis>’,<Emphasis Type="Italic">N</Emphasis>’-tetraacetic acid

Stability constants and heat effects of the formation reactions of magnesium and calcium trimethylenediaminetetraacetates at 298.15 K and ionic strength of 0.1, 0.5, and 1.0 (mol/L KNO₃) have been determined by means of potentiometry and calorimetry. Standard thermodynamic parameters (log K⁰, Δ_rG⁰, Δ_rH⁰, and Δ_rS⁰) of the studied equilibriums have been determined.     

<Emphasis Type="Italic">β</Emphasis>-Chloro-<Emphasis Type="Italic">α</Emphasis>,<Emphasis Type="Italic">β</Emphasis>-unsaturated carbonyls as convenient precursors of highly substituted benzenes

The Diels–Alder reactions of three β-chloro-α,β-unsaturated carbonyl compounds 1–3 with different dienes were carried out to afford highly functionalized cyclohexenes 4–9, bearing quaternary centers, in good yields. These cycloadducts (CAs) undergo dehydrochlorination with subsequent aromatization in the presence of 1,8-diazabicyclo[5.4.0]undec-7-ene DBU to produce new substituted benzenes 11–14. Compound 10 is the product of lactonization and removal of an HCl molecule from compound 7. All products were characterized by NMR, IR, elementary analysis and some of them by MS. Structure assignments of isomers were carried out on the basis of NMR chemical shifts and coupling constants using 1D, 2D and heteronOe NMR techniques.     

Single-Step Partial Purification of Intracellular <Emphasis Type="Italic">β</Emphasis>-Galactosidase from <Emphasis Type="Italic">Kluyveromyces lactis</Emphasis> Using Microemulsion Droplets

Partial purification of β-galactosidase from the crude extract of Kluyveromyces lactis was carried out using water-in-isooctane microemulsions formed by the anionic surfactant, sodium di-ethylhexyl sulfosuccinate (Aerosol OT). In order to obtain the crude extract, yeast cells of K. lactis were disrupted by a cell disrupter and separated. The purification of β-galactosidase from the extract by a recently developed one-step reversed micellar (i.e., microemulsion-based) extraction method was then tested, by measuring total protein mass and enzyme activity in the product stream and by analyzing its composition using sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) and gel filtration chromatography. Effects of salt concentration, protein concentration, and pH on the extraction were investigated. Using this approach, a 5.4-fold purification of β-galactosidase was achieved with 96 % total activity recovery, using a feed containing crude extract and 50 mM K-phosphate buffer (pH 7.5) and 50 mM KCl. Gel filtration chromatography showed that the single extraction was successful at removing low molecular weight impurity proteins (molecular weight (MW)?<?42 kDa) from the crude extract.