• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.25 no.11
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• pp.1894-1901
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• 2015

A novel sulfatase gene, ary423 (1,536 bp ORF), encoding a protein of 511 amino acids with a calculated molecular mass of 56 kDa, was identified from Flammeovirga pacifica, which was isolated from deep-sea sediments of west Pacific Ocean. Amino acid sequence analysis revealed that Ary423 possessed a conserved C-X-A-X-R motif, which was recognized as the sulfatase signature. Phylogenetic analysis suggested that Ary423 belonged to arylsulfatases. After heterologous expression in Escherichia coli cells, the recombinant Ary423 was purified with a Ni⁺ affinity column, and was shown to be highly active at a broad range of temperatures from 30° to 70℃, with maximum activity at 40℃. Furthermore, recombinant Ary423 retained more than 70% and 40% of its maximum activity after 12 h of incubation at 50℃ and 60℃, respectively, exhibiting good thermostability at high temperatures. The optimal pH for Ary423 was determined to be 8.0 and the activity of Ary423 could be slightly enhanced by Mg²⁺. The recombinant enzyme could hydrolyze sulfate ester bonds in p-nitrophenyl sulfate (NPS) and Asparagus crude polysaccharides with a specific activity of 64.8 U/mg and 25.4 U/mg, respectively. These favorable properties could make Ary423 attractive for application in the desulfating process of agar production.