Protease Properties of Protease-Producing Bacteria Isolated from the Digestive Tract of Octopus vulgaris

A high protease-producing strain was isolated and identified from the digestive tract of octopus vulgaris by detecting a hydrolysis circle of protease and its activity. The strain was identified by morphology observation, biochemical experiments, and 16S rRNA sequence analysis. The protease obtained from the strain was purified by a three-step process involving ammonium sulfate precipitation, carboxy methyl-cellulose (CM-52) cation-exchange chromatography, and DEAE-Sephadex A50 anion-exchange chromatography. The properties of protease were characterized as well. The strain Bacillus sp. QDV-3, which produced the highest activity of protease, was isolated. On the basis of the phenotypic and biochemical characterization and 16S rRNA gene-sequencing studies, the isolate was identified as follows: domain: Bacteria; phylum: Firmicutes; class: Bacilli; order: Bacillales; family: Bacillaceae; and genus: Bacillus. The isolate was shown to have a 99.2% similarity with Bacillus flexus. A high active protease designated as QDV-E, with a molecular weight of 61.6 kDa, was obtained. The enzyme was found to be active in the pH range of 9.0-9.5 and its optimum temperature was $40^{\circ}C$. The protease activity retained more than 96% at the temperature of $50^{\circ}C$ for 60 min. Phenylmethylsulfonyl fluoride (PMSF) inhibited the enzyme activity, thus confirming that this protease isolated from Bacillus sp. QDV-3 is an alkaline serine protease. Metal ions, $Mn^{2+}$ and $Mg^{2+}$, were determined to enhance the protease activity, whereas $Ba^{2+}$, $Zn^{2+}$, and $Cu^{2+}$ were found to inactivate the enzyme.

Octopus vulgaris의 장관으로부터 분리한 단백질 분해효소 생성 균주와 생성된 효소의 특성

Octopus vulgaris의 장관으로부터 단백질 가수분해력과 활성을 측정함으로서 높은 단백질분해효소 생성능을 가진 균을 분리하여 동정하였다. 균이 생성한 단백질분해효소는 황산암모늄침전, cellulose CM-52 양이온 교환 크로마토그래피, DEAE-Sephadex A50 음이온 교환 크로마토그래피의 3단계를 통해 정제하였다. 장관으로부터 분리한 균중 가장 높은 단백질분해효소 생성능을 가진 균은 Bacillus sp. QDV-3로 나타났으며 이균을 분리한 후 표현형 분석, 생화학적 특성, 16S rRNA 유전자염기서열분석을 통해 Bacteria역, Firmicutes문, Bacilli강, Bacillales목, Bacillaceae과, Bacillus속으로 Bacillus flexus와 99.2%의 유사성을 보이는 것으로 확인하였다. 균이 생성한 단백질 분해효소를 QDV-E로 지정하였으며 61.6 kDa의 분자량을 나타내었다. 이 효소는 pH 9.0~9.5에서 활성을 나타내었고 최적온도는 $40^{\circ}C$였으며 $50^{\circ}C$에서는 60분간 96% 이상의 활성을 보유하였다. Phenyl methyl sulfonyl fluoride (PMSF)에 의하여 활성이 억제 되었으므로 세린 알칼리성 단백 분해 효소인 것으로 결론지었다. 금속이온인 $Mn^{2+}$ 와 $Mg^{2+}$에 의하여 효소활성 상승효과를 보였으며 $Ba^{2+}$, $Zn^{2+}$, 그리고 $Cu^{2+}$에 의하여 활성이 억제되었다.