Isolation and characterization of novel tyrosinase from Laceyella sacchari.

We here describe the isolation and characterization of a tyrosinase from a newly isolated soil bacterium. 16S rDNA sequence analysis revealed that the bacterium most probably belongs to the species Laceyella sacchari (Ls) ( > 99.9 % identity). The tyrosinase extracellular enzymatic activity was induced in the presence of L-methionine and CuSO4. The crude enzyme was first purified by centrifugation followed by ammonium sulphate precipitation and ultrafiltration. After removal of a brown pigment, probably melanin, a purified enzyme was obtained by further separation of the crude protein mixture using size exclusion chromatography. Some 10.5 mg of pure tyrosinase (LsTyr) was isolated with a molecular mass of 30 910 Da, based on MALDI mass spectrometry. Together with the observed enzymatic activity, N-terminal chemical sequence analysis confirmed that the isolated enzyme is homologous to other tyrosinases. The kinetic parameters for the diphenol substrates L-DOPA and dopamine and for the monophenol substrate L-tyrosine were determined to be KM = 4.5 mM , 1.5 mM and 0.055 mM, and kcat/KM = 261.5 mM-1 s -1 , 30.6 mM-1 s-1 and 56.3 mM-1 s-1, respectively. Maximal activities of the purified enzyme were found to occur at pH 6.8.

Debittering of Protein Hydrolysates by Lactobacillus LBL-4 Aminopeptidase.

Yoghurt strain Lactobacillus LBL-4 cultivated for 8-10 h at pH ~6.0 was investigated as a considerable food-grade source of intracellular aminopeptidase. Cell-free extract manifesting >200 AP U/l was obtained from cells harvested from 1 L culture media. Subtilisin-induced hydrolysates of casein, soybean isolate, and Scenedesmus cell protein with degree of hydrolysis 20-22% incubated at 45°C for 10 h by 10 AP U/g peptides caused an enlarging of DH up to 40-42%, 46-48%, and 38-40% respectively. The DH increased rapidly during the first 4 h, but gel chromatography studies on BioGel P-2 showed significant changes occurred during 4-10 h of enzyme action when the DH increased gradually. After the digestion, the remained AP activity can be recovered by ultrafiltration (yield 40-50%). Scenedesmus protein hydrolysate with DH 20% was inoculated by Lactobacillus LBL-4 cells, and after 72 h cultivation the DH reached 32%. The protein hydrolysates (DH above 40%) obtained from casein and soybean isolate (high Q value) demonstrated a negligible bitterness while Scenedesmus protein hydrolysates (low Q value) after both treatments were free of bitterness.

Preparation of antioxidant enzymatic hydrolysates from honeybee-collected pollen using plant enzymes.

Enzymatic hydrolysates of honeybee-collected pollen were prepared using food-grade proteinase and aminopeptidases entirely of plant origin. Bromelain from pineapple stem was applied (8 mAU/g substrate) in the first hydrolysis stage. Aminopeptidase (0.05 U/g substrate) and proline iminopeptidase (0.03 U/g substrate) from cabbage leaves (Brassica oleracea var. capitata), and aminopeptidase (0.2 U/g substrate) from chick-pea cotyledons (Cicer arietinum L.) were involved in the additional hydrolysis of the peptide mixtures. The degree of hydrolysis (DH), total phenolic contents, and protein contents of these hydrolysates were as follows: DH (about 20-28%), total phenolics (15.3-27.2 µg/mg sample powder), and proteins (162.7-242.8 µg/mg sample powder), respectively. The hydrolysates possessed high antiradical scavenging activity determined with DPPH (42-46% inhibition). The prepared hydrolysates of bee-collected flower pollen may be regarded as effective natural and functional dietary food supplements due to their remarkable content of polyphenol substances and significant radical-scavenging capacity with special regard to their nutritional-physiological implications.

Purification and characterization of tyrosinases from Streptomyces albus.

The bacterium Streptomyces albus has so far never been investigated for tyrosinase activity. The studies presented in this communication show that this bacterium may be a future source for larger production of tyrosinase. The enzyme was purified starting with 5,600 ml of culture filtrate. The crude enzyme was first purified by centrifugation, followed by ammonium sulfate precipitation and ultrafiltration. Then, melanin was removed applying a Servacell DEAE 52 resin, using the batch technique. Thereafter, the crude enzyme was loaded on a SEC Sephacryl S-100 column and, after ultrafiltration, 1.17 mg of purified tyrosinase were obtained. The molecular mass of the purified enzyme was determined by MALDI mass spectrometry to be 30,096 Da which corresponds to the obtained results from SDS-PAGE. Using the diphenol L-DOPA and the monophenol L-tyrosine as substrates, the kinetic parameters for both substrates, Km = 7.8 mM and 0.5 mM and k(cat)/Km = 157 mM(-1) s(-1) and 23 mM(-1) s(-1), respectively, were determined. Maximal activities of the purified enzyme were recorded at pH 7.0. Long-term experiments with Streptomyces albus tyrosinase revealed that storage of the lyophilized enzyme sample at temperatures below zero turned out to be the best. For tyrosinase in buffer containing 20% glycerol, no loss of activity was observed at 4 degrees C and -60 degrees C.

Purification and characterization of L-phenylalanine aminopeptidase from chick-pea cotyledons (Cicer arietinum L.).

Chick-pea (Cicer arietinum L.) cotyledons are unique source of aminopeptidase - 8-9 U/g cotyledons was observed using L-leucine-p-nitroanilide as substrate. The aminopeptidase was purified (65 kDa, pI 4.8 ) reaching a specific activity of 220 U/mg at pH 7.0-7.2 and 35-40 degrees C. The determined constant of specificity k(cat)/K(m) during hydrolysis of N-unsubstituted amino acid-p-nitroanilides showed a decrease order: Phe>Leu>Pro>Ile>Val>Ala. The enzyme was strongly inhibited by p-chloromercuribenzoic acid as well as in a competitive rate by the antihypertensive peptides Ile-Pro-Pro and Val-Pro-Pro.

Characterization of an aminopeptidase and a proline iminopeptidase from cabbage leaves.

Aminopeptidase, preferring phenylalanine-p-nitroanilide as substrate, and proline iminopeptidase, highly-specific for proline-p-nitroanilide, were isolated from cabbage leaves (Brassica oleraceae var. capitata). As pH optima, 7.2-7.5 for aminopeptidase activity and 8.0-8.5 for proline iminopeptidase were determined. Both peptidases were strongly inhibited by p-chloromercuribenzoic acid, heavy metal ions and urea. The molecular weights were determined by gel filtration to be 56 and 204 kDa, respectively. The iminopeptidase was decomposed during SDS electrophoresis to four subunits of 50 kDa. Minor impurities of myrosinase-associated protein (approximately 70 kDa) were found in both preparations. Preliminary data of their amino acid sequences showed similarities to those of aminopeptidases N (family M1) and proline iminopeptidases (family S33).