• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.18 no.9
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• pp.1544-1549
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• 2008

MhMTS and MhMTH are trehalose ($\alpha$-D-glucopyranosyl-[1,1]-$\alpha$-D-glucopyranose) biosynthesis genes of the thermophilic microorganism Metallosphaera hakonensis, and encode a maltooligosyltrehalose synthase (MhMTS) and a maltooligosyltrehalose trehalohydrolase (MhMTH), respectively. In this study, the two genes were fused in-frame in a recombinant DNA, and expressed in Escherichia coli to produce a bifunctional fusion enzyme, MhMTSH. Similar to the two-step reactions with MhMTS and MhMTH, the fusion enzyme catalyzed the sequential reactions on maltopentaose, maltotriosyltrehalose formation, and following hydrolysis, producing trehalose and maltotriose. Optimum conditions for the fusion enzyme-catalyzed trehalose synthesis were around $70^{\circ}C$ and pH 5.0-6.0. The MhMTSH fusion enzyme exhibited a high degree of thermostability, retaining 80% of the activity when pre-incubated at $70^{\circ}C$ for 48 h. The stability was gradually abolished by incubating the fusion enzyme at above $80^{\circ}C$. The MhMTSH fusion enzyme was active on various sizes of maltooligosaccharides, extending its substrate specificity to soluble starch, the most abundant natural source of trehalose production.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.47 no.1
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• pp.139-147
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• 2019

Glutamate decarboxylase catalyzes the conversion of glutamate to gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), contributing to pH homeostasis through proton consumption. The reaction is the first step toward the GABA shunt. To date, the enzymes involved in the glutamate metabolism of Photobacterium damselae subsp. piscicida have not been elucidated. In this study, an open reading frame of P. damselae subsp. piscicida, showing homology to the glutamate decarboxylase or putative pyridoxal-dependent aspartate 1-decarboxylase genes, was isolated and cloned into an expression vector to produce the recombinant enzyme. Preliminary gas chromatography-mass spectrometry characterization of the purified recombinant enzyme revealed that it catalyzed not only the decarboxylation of glutamate but also the transamination of GABA. This enzyme of P. damselae subsp. piscicida could be bifunctional, combining decarboxylase and transaminase activities in a single polypeptide chain.

• Journal of Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.43 no.4
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• pp.240-245
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• 2000

Two genes encoding maltooligosyltrehalose synthase (SaMTS) and maltooligosyltrehalose trehalohydrolase (SaMTH) were isolated from a hyperthermophilic microorganism, Sulfolobus acidocaldarius (ATCC 49462). ORFs of the SaMTS and SaMTH genes are 2,163 and 1,671 bp long and encode 720 and 556 amino acid residues, respectively. A bifunctional fusion enzyme (SaMTSH) was constructed through the gene fusion of SaMTS and SaMTH. Recombinant SaMTS, SaMTH, and SaMTSH fusion enzyme were overexpressed in E. coli BL21. SaMTS and SaMTH produced trehalose and maltotriose from maltopentaose in a sequential reaction. SaMTSH fusion enzyme catalyzed the sequential reaction in which the formation of maltotriosyltrehalose was followed by hydrolysis leading to the synthesis of trehalose and maltotriose. The SaMTSH fusion enzyme showed the highest activity at pH 5.0-5.5 and $70-75^{\circ}C$. SaMTS, SaMTH, and SaMTSH fusion enzyme were active in soluble starch, which resulted in the production of trehalose.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.35-42
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• 2003

A 1,3 kb cellulase gene encoding novel bifunctional cellulase-chitosanase activity was cloned from biopolymer-producing alkali-tolerant B. lichenformis NBL420 in E. coli. A recombinant cellulase-chitosanase, named CelA, was expressed and purified to homogeneity. The activity staining and the enzymatic characterization of the purified CeIA revealed bifunctional activities on carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) and glycol-chitosan. The similar characteristics of the enzymatic activities at the optimum pH, optimum temperature, and thermostability Indicated that CelA used a common catalytic domain with relaxed substrate specificity. A comparison of the deduced amino acids in the N-terminal region revealed that the mature CelA had a high homology with the previously identified bifunctional cellulase-chitosanase of Myxobacter sp. AL- 1.

• BMB Reports
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• v.31 no.2
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• pp.144-148
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• 1998

A bifunctional catalase-peroxidase, designated catalase-2, of a UV resistant Deinococcus radiophilus was purified to electrophoretic homogeneity by both chromatographic and electrophoretic methods. Its molecular weight was 310 kDa and composed of a tetramer of 80 kDa subunits. The catalase-2 exerted its optimal activity at $30^{\circ}C$ and around pH 9. Its $K_m$ value for $H_{2}0_{2} $ was about 10 mM. It showed the typical ferric heme spectrum with maximum absorption at 403 nm which shifted to 419 nm in the presence of cyanide. The ratio of A40i' A2S0 was 0.48. Fifty percent inhibition of the enzyme activity was observed at $4.6{\times}10^{-6}$, $7.7{\times}10^{-6}$, and $3.0{\times}10^{-6}$ M of NaCN, $NaN_3$, and $NH_{2}OH$, respectively. The enzyme was thermostable and not sensitive to 3-amino-1,2,4-triazole. Treatment of the enzyme with ethanol-chloroform caused a partial loss (30%) of its activity. The catalase-2 was distinct from the Deinococcal bifunctional catalase-3 in a number of properties, particularly in its molecular structure and substrate affinity.

• BMB Reports
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• v.33 no.1
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• pp.43-48
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• 2000

4-Aminobutyrate aminotransferase is a key enzyme of the 4-aminobutyric acid shunt. It converts the neurotransmitter 4-aminobutyric acid to succinic semialdehyde. In order to study the structural and functional aspects of catalytically active Cys residues of pig brain 4-aminobutyrate aminotransferase, we purified the active form in E. coli by coproduction of thioredoxin. The structural arrangement for functional requirements of a dimeric protein using a bifunctional sultbydryl reagent was then characterized, and the spatial proximity between the essential SH groups and a cofactor (pyridoxal-5'-phosphate) binding site was determined. The bifunctional sultbydryl reagent DMDS reacted with the enzyme at the ratio of one molecule per enzyme dimer. This resulted in an approximately 50% loss of enzymatic activity. The spatial proximity of the distance between the essential SH groups and the cofactor-binding site was determined by the energy transfer measurement technique. The result (approximate 20 ${\AA}$) suggested that cross-linking of two sulfhydryl groups with DMDS is not near a PLP binding site.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.16 no.7
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• pp.1132-1138
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• 2006

Three types of xylanases (EC 3.2.1.8) were detected in the strain Aspergillus niger A-25, one of which, designated as XynIII, also displayed ${\beta}-(l,3-1,4)-glucanase$ (EC 3.2.1.73) activity, as determined by a zymogram analysis. XynIII was purified by ultrafiltration and ion-exchange chromatography methods. Its apparent molecular weight was about 27.9 kDa, as estimated by SDS-PAGE. The purified XynIII could hydrolyze birchwood xylan, oat spelt xylan, lichenin, and barley ${\beta}-glucan$, but not CMC, avicel cellulose, or soluble starch under the assay conditions in this study. The xylanase and ${\beta}-(l,3-1,4)-glucanase$ activities of XynIII both had a similar optimal pH and pH stability, as well as a similar optimal temperature and temperature stability. Moreover, the effects of metal ions on the two enzymatic activities were also similar. The overall hydrolytic rates of XynIII in different mixtures of xylan and lichenin coincided with those calculated using the Michaelis-Menten model when assuming the two substrates were competing for the same active site in the enzyme. Accordingly, the results indicated that XynIII is a novel bifunctional enzyme and its xylanase and ${\beta}-(l,3-1,4)-glucanase$ activities are catalyzed by the same active center.

• Biotechnology and Bioprocess Engineering:BBE
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• v.7 no.3
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• pp.130-137
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• 2002

Microbial lactonohydrolases (intramolecular ester bond-hydrolyzing enzymes) with unique properties were found. The lactonohydrolase from Fusarium oxysporum catalyzes enantiose-lective hydrolysis of aldonate lactones and D-pantoyl lactone (D-PL). This enzyme is useful for the large-scale optical resolution of racemic PL. The Agrobacterium tumefaciens enzyme catalyzes asymmetric hydrolysis of PL, but the stereospecificity is opposite to that of the Fusarium enzyme. Dihydrocoumarin hydrolase (DHase) from Acinetobacter calcoaceticus is a bifunctional enzyme, which catalyzes not only hydrolysis of aromatic lactones but also bromination of monochlorodi-medon in the presence of H$_2$O$_2$and dihydrocoumarin. DHase also hydrolyzes several linear esters, and is useful for enantioselective hydrolysis of methyl DL-$\beta$-acetylthioisobutyrate and regioselective hydrolysis of methyl cetraxate.

• Biotechnology and Bioprocess Engineering:BBE
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• v.6 no.4
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• pp.244-251
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• 2001

Over half of all biologically active peptide and peptide hormones are $\alpha$-amidated at their C-terminus, which is essential for their full biological activities. Amidation is accomplished through the sequential reaction of the two enzymes encoded by the single bifunctional, peptidyl-glycine $\alpha$-amidating monooxygenase (PAM or an $\alpha$-amidating enzyme). PAM catalyze the forma - tion of a peptide amide from peptide precursors that include a C-terminal glycine, and requires copper molecular oxygen and ascorbate. PAM is the only enzyme that produces peptide amides in vivo. However various strategies utilizing PAM, carboxypeptidase-Y enzymes, and chemical syn-thesis have been developed for producing peptide amides in vitro. The growing need and impor-tance of peptide amide drugs has highlighted the necessity for a efficient in vitro amidating sys-tem for industrial application for the production of peptide hormones, like calcitonin and oxytocin. This review presents the current situation regarding amidation with a special emphasis on the in-dustrial production or peptide hormones.

• KSBB Journal
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• v.6 no.2
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• pp.147-156
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• 1991

Diazotized chitin (CHITN) was synthesized reacting with NaN3 and HCl to alkaline hydrolyzed chitin for the support of immobilized enzyme. Immobilized $\beta$-glucosidase on diazotized chitin(CHITN-Gase) was produced reacting with glutaraldehyds as bifunctional reagent. CHITN-Gase activities were determined reacting with p-nitrophenol-$\beta$-D-glucopyranoside in plug flow reactor as a reference. Optimum temperature, optimum pH, reaction constant and deactivation rate were determined with variation of flow rate and H/D. The particle size of immobilized enzyme in the best was, 35 mesh (CHITN35-Gase). The optimum conditions of immobilized enzyme were $70^{\circ}C$ in temperature and 5.0 in pH. Diameter and flow rate of plug flow reactor in the best was 8.5mm in diameter and 0.8ml/min in flow rate. Reaction constant was mainly influenced by electrostatic force. The best glucose hydrolizing activities of CHITN3 5-Gase was 3.34$\times$10-5 M/1. while that of native-$\beta$-glucosidase was 2.44$\times$10-5 M/1.