A screening method for endo-beta-1,4-xylanase substrate selectivity

Anal Biochem. 2003 Aug 1;319(1):73-7. doi: 10.1016/s0003-2697(03)00161-1.

Abstract

Endoxylanase (EC 3.2.1.8) substrate selectivity, i.e., its relative activity toward water-unextractable arabinoxylan (WU-AX) and water-extractable arabinoxylan (WE-AX) substrates, is important for its functionality in biotechnological processes such as bread-making and gluten starch separation. A screening method for rapidly determining said substrate selectivity was developed. Endoxylanase activity toward WU-AX was estimated by incubation of insoluble chromogenic substrate with a range of enzyme concentrations in microtiter plates, followed by colorimetric measurement of the dye released in the supernatant. A similar approach using soluble substrate and ethanol precipitation of unhydrolysed AX fragments was used to estimate enzyme activity toward WE-AX. A substrate selectivity factor was defined as the ratio of enzyme activity toward insoluble substrate over enzyme activity toward soluble substrate. A Bacillus subtilis and an Aspergillus aculeatus endoxylanase, known to have widely varying relative rates of hydrolysis of WU-AX and WE-AX, varied most in their substrate selectivity, while the endoxylanases of Aspergillus niger, Trichoderma longibrachiatum, and Trichoderma viride displayed intermediate such relative activities.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Aspergillus / enzymology
  • Bacillus subtilis / enzymology
  • Endo-1,4-beta Xylanases / metabolism*
  • Kinetics
  • Spectrophotometry, Atomic
  • Substrate Specificity
  • Trichoderma / enzymology
  • Xylans / metabolism*

Substances

  • Xylans
  • Endo-1,4-beta Xylanases