BETA-ETHERASES FOR LIGNIN DEPOLYMERISATION
20230203461 · 2023-06-29
Assignee
Inventors
Cpc classification
International classification
Abstract
The present application relates to nucleic acids encoding polypeptides with β-etherase activity; polypeptides with β-etherase activity; vectors comprising said nucleic acids for the production of recombinant β-etherase; cells, for example microbial cells transformed with nucleic acids encoding β-etherase activity and vectors, including nucleic acids encoding β-etherases; a composition comprising β-etherases suitable for processing lignocellulose and a method that uses β-etherases or compositions comprising β-etherases in the processing of lignocellulose and related polysaccharides.
Claims
1. An isolated nucleic acid molecule encoding a β-etherase polypeptide wherein said polypeptide comprises copper and further wherein the activity of said polypeptide is independent of NAD.sup.+ and/or glutathione.
2. The isolated nucleic acid molecule according to claim 1, wherein said isolated nucleic acid molecule comprises a nucleotide sequence selected from the group consisting of: i) a nucleotide sequence as set forth in SEQ ID NO: 18, SEQ ID NO:17. SEQ ID NO: 19, SEQ ID NO: 20, SEQ ID NO: 21, SEQ ID NO: 22, SEQ ID NO: 23, SEQ ID NO: 24, or SEQ ID NO: 25; ii) a nucleotide sequence wherein said sequence is degenerate as a result of the genetic code to the nucleotide sequence defined in (i); iii) a nucleic acid molecule comprising a nucleotide sequence the complementary strand of which hybridizes under stringent hybridisation conditions to sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 18, SEQ ID NO: 17, SEQ ID NO: 19, SEQ ID NO: 20, SEQ ID NO: 21, SEQ ID NO: 22, SEQ ID NO: 23, SEQ ID NO:24 or SEQ ID NO: 25; iv) a nucleotide sequence that encodes a polypeptide comprising an amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 26, SEQ ID NO: 27, SEQ ID NO: 28, SEQ ID NO: 29, SEQ ID NO: 30, SEQ ID NO: 31, SEQ ID NO: 32 or SEQ ID NO: 33; v) a nucleotide sequence that encodes a polypeptide comprising an amino acid sequence wherein said amino acid sequence is modified by addition, deletion or substitution of at least one amino acid residue as represented in iv) above and has β-etherase activity.
3-9. (canceled)
10. An isolated β-etherase polypeptide wherein said polypeptide comprises copper and further wherein the activity of said polypeptide is independent of NAD.sup.+ and/or glutathione.
11. The isolated polypeptide according to claim 10, wherein said isolated polypeptide is selected from the group consisting of: i) a polypeptide comprising or consisting of an amino acid sequence as set forth in SEQ ID NO: 26, SEQ ID NO: 27, SEQ ID NO: 28, SEQ ID NO: 29, SEQ ID NO: 30, SEQ ID NO: 31. SEQ ID NO: 32 OR SEQ ID NO: 33; ii) a modified polypeptide comprising or consisting of a modified amino acid sequence wherein said polypeptide is modified by addition, deletion or substitution of at least one amino acid residue of the sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 26. SEQ ID NO: 27, SEQ ID NO: 28, SEQ ID NO: 29, SEQ ID NO: 30, SEQ ID NO: 31, SEQ ID NO: 32 or SEQ ID NO: 33, and which has β-etherase activity.
12-18. (canceled)
19. A vector comprising the nucleic acid molecule according to claim 1.
20. The vector according to claim 19. wherein the vector is an expression vector adapted for expression in a heterologous microbial host cell.
21. A cell transformed or transfected with the nucleic acid molecule according to claim 1.
22. The cell according to claim 21, wherein said cell is a heterologous host cell wherein said heterologous host cell does not naturally express the nucleic acid molecule.
23. The cell according to claim 21, wherein said cell is a bacterial cell, a fungal cell or a yeast cell.
24. (canceled)
25. The cell according to claim 23, wherein said fungal cell is an Aspergillus sp. cell. or wherein said fungal cell is not a Parascedosporium sp cell.
26. (canceled)
27. A composition comprising one or more polypeptides according to claim 10.
28. A composition according to claim 27, wherein said composition comprises at least the polypeptide set forth in SEQ ID NO: 9 or 26.
29. A composition according to claim 27, wherein said one more polypeptides are set forth in SEQ ID NO: 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32 and 33.
30. A composition according to claim 27 wherein said composition further comprises one or more polypeptides for the saccharification of lignocellulose selected from the group consisting of cellulases, lytic polysaccharide monooxygenases, carbohydrate esterases, hemicellulases, glycosylhydrolases, endoglucanases, cellobiohydrolases, beta-glucosidases, xylanases, mannases, cellobiose dehydrogenases, and beta-xylosidases.
31. A method for the modification of plant biomass comprising the following steps: i) contacting plant biomass with the composition according to claim 27 to form a reaction mixture; and ii) incubating said reaction mixture under conditions which cleave β-ether linkages present in the plant biomass to obtain depolymerised lignin units.
32. The method according to claim 31, wherein; said method comprises a further step of extracting said depolymerised lignin units from the reaction mixture; said method comprises a further step of contacting said reaction mixture with a composition comprising one or more polypeptides for the saccharification of the processed lignocellulose; and/or said method comprises extracting di- and/or monosaccharides.sub..
33. The method according to claim 31, wherein: said depolymerised lignin units are selected from the group consisting of flavones and p-coumaric acid; and/or said plant biomass is wheat straw or sugarcane bagasse.
34. The method according to claim 33 wherein said flavones are tricin.
35-36. (canceled)
37. The method according to claim 32, wherein said saccharification composition comprises or consist of one or more polypeptides selected from the group consisting of cellulases, lytic polysaccharide monooxygenases, carbohydrate esterases, hemicellulases, glycosylhydrolases, endoglucanases, cellobiohydrolases, beta-glucosidases, xylanases, mannases, cellobiose dehydrogenases, and beta-xylosidases.
38. (canceled)
39. A method for the manufacture of a β-etherase polypeptide comprising the following steps: i) providing the cell according to claim 21 and cell culture medium, ii) culturing the cell in i) above to express a β-eherase polypeptide wherein said polypeptide comprises copper and further wherein the activity of said polypeptide is independent of NAD.sup.+ and/or glutathione; and optionally, iii) isolating said polypeptide from the cell or cell culture medium.
40. The method according to claim 39 wherein said polypeptide is isolated under denaturing conditions.
Description
[0255] An embodiment of the invention will now be described by example only and with reference to the following figures:
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[0273] The quantification values shown in the table are for relative comparisons of the lignin components determined from NMR contour volume-integrals based on S + G + H = 100%. The pCA and T units are lignin appendages; their levels were estimated and expressed based on the total lignin (S + G + H). Assignments are from papers noted in the Experimental Section, along with the newly Aβ-T assignment (80). Note that, to allow the crucial lignin side-chain contours to be more clearly seen, the boxed lignin side-chain region was vertically scaled by ~1.75×.
[0274]
TABLE-US-00001 Proteins showing homology to the putative β-etherase within P. putredinis NO1 transcriptome. BLASTp searches were performed on the c2092_g1_i1 sequence (SEQ ID NO 9) against the assembled P. putredinis NO1 transcriptome SEQ ID evalue pident length bitscore Similarity% Similarity c19124_g1_i1_4 (SEQ IQ NO 10) 9.4E-111 43.796 411 330 0.608 256/421 c7740_g1_i1_6 (SEQ ID NO 11) 8.17E-77 38.482 382 243 0.508 23/439 c10688_g1_i1_2 (SEQ ID NO 12) 1.72E-74 40.395 354 236 0.52 226/435 c5294_g1_i1_3 (SEQ ID NO 13) 1.65E-71 37.366 372 229 0.52 223/429 c2117_g1_i1_2 (SEQ ID NO 14) 2.9E-57 36.936 349 191 0.422 184/436 c19010_g1_i1_4 (SEQ ID NO 15) 2.94E-32 29.254 335 125 0.325 164/505 c7470_g1_i1_2 (SEQ ID NO 16) 2.25E-26 23.37 368 108 0.376 169/449
TABLE-US-00002 Proteins with homology to the β-etherase within NCBI non-redundant database. BLASTp searches were performed on the c2092_g1_i1 sequence against the non-redundant protein database held by NCBI. Results were filtered to >50 % identity Description Max Score Total Score Query Cover E value Percent identity gb|PKS12997.1| hypothetical protein jhhlp_000338 [Lomentospora prolifcans] 713 713 100% 0.0 87.50% ref|XP_016642676.1| Tyrosinase central domain protein [Scedosporium apiospermum] 674 674 100% 0.0 82.40% gb|TPX10091.1| hypothetical protein E0L32_001288 [Phialemoniopsis curvata] 572 572 93% 0.0 67.19% gb|ELA32929.1| tyrosinase central domain protein [Colletotrichum fructicola Nara gc5] 506 506 99% 7e-176 57.95% gb|KZL67883.1| tyrosinase central domain-containing protein [Colletotrichum tofieldiae] 501 501 97% 8e-174 58.90% gb|EQB58959.1| hvpothetical protein CGLO_00722 [Colletotrichum gloeosporioides Cg-14] 497 497 92% 3e-172 59.89% gb|KZL82263.1| tyrosinase central domain-containing protein [Colletotrichum incamum] 496 496 97% 3e-172 58.15% gb|KXH49404.1| tyrosinase central domain-containing protein [Colletotrichum nymphaeae SA-01] 486 486 99% 2e-168 55.88% gb|KXH49404.1| tyrosinase central domain-containing protein [Colletotrichum simmondsii] 485 485 99% 1e-167 55.64% gb|OLN85731.1| Grixazone synthase 2 [Colletotrichum chlorophyti] 484 484 92% 3e-167 58.99% ref|XP_018157362.1| tyrosinase central domain-containing protein [Colletotrichum higginsiamamIMI 349063] 481 481 92% 4e-166 59.37% gb|EXF76797.1| tyrosinase central domain-containing protein [Colletotrichum fioriniae PJ7] 479 479 99% 2e-165 55.15% gb|TDZ75107.1 tyrosinase-like protein orsC {colletotrichum trifolii] 476 476 92% 4e-164 59.95% gb|TKW48599.1| hypothetical protein CTA1_467 [Colletotrichum tanaceti] 473 473 92% 7e-163 58.42% gb|TDZ15437.1| tyrosinase-like protein orsC [colletotrichum orbiculare MAFF 240422] 470 470 92% 4e-162 60.48% ref|XP_001227696.2| hypothetical protein CHGG 09769 [Chaetomium globosum CBS 148.51] 469 469 100% 2e-161 55.50% gb|TDZ29471.1| Tyrosinase-like protein orsC [colletotrichum spinosum] 460 460 92% 2e-157 57.00% ref|XP_022470530.1| tyrosinase central domain-containing protein [Colletotrichum orchidophilum] 458 458 99% 2e-157 54.66% gb|OIW32989.1 tyrosinase central domain-containing protein [Coniochaeta ligniaria NRRL30616 447 447 92% 5e-153 53.79% gb|KXH30586.1| tyrosinase central domain-containing protein [Colletotrichum salicis] 447 447 97% 3e-152 54.02% gb|RKU41032.1| hypothetical potein DL546 002981 [Coniochaeta pulveracea] 442 442 99% 5e-151 51.96% gb|KZL64229.1| tyrosinase central domain-containing protein [Colletotrichum incanum] 434 434 92% 4e-145 55.17% gb|TEA15757.1| Tyrosinase-like protein orsC [Colletotrichum sidae] 427 427 92% 6e-145 55.00% gb|OHW92206.1| tyrosinase central domain-containing protein [Colletotrichum incanum] 420 420 84% 5e-143 57.73% ref|XP_01816298.1| Tyrosinase central domain-containing protein [Colletotrichum higginsianum IMI 349063] 425 425 92% 1e-142 54.38% gb|TID02585.1| Tyrosinase ustQ [Colletotrichum higginsianum] 425 425 92% 1e-142 54.38% gb|OLN83361.1| Tyrosinase 2 [Colletotrichum chlorophyti] 417 417 92% 5e-141 51.97% emb|CCF32411.1| hypothetical protein CH063 04807 [Colletotrichum higginsianum 412 412 84% 7e-140 56.85% gb|KZL72889.1| tyrosinase-like protein [Colletotrichum tofieldiae] 412 412 84% 7e-140 57.14% gb|TKW50870.1| hypothetical protein CTA1 3684 [Colletotrichum tanaceti] 419 419 92% 7e-140 52.39% gb|KDN70624.1| hypothetical protein CSUB01 04485 [Colletotrichum sublineola] 417 417 92% 1e-139 53.58% gb|EXF84421.1| hypothetical protein CFIO01_02736 [Colletotrichum fioriniae PJ7] 409 409 92% 1e-136 52.22% gb|XP_003664995.1| tyrosinase-like protein [Thermothelmyces thermophilus ATCC 42464] 404 404 92% 3e-136 54.09% gb|TQN72542.1 Tyrosinase-like protein orsC [Colletotrichum sp. PG-2018a] 407 407 89% 5e-136 54.77% ref|XP_003351009.1| uncharacterized protein SMAC 04313 [Sordaria marcrospora k-hell] 399 399 97% 6e-134 50.12% ref|XP_006692366.1| hypothetical protein CTHT 0018720 [Chaetomium thermophilum yar. thermophilum DSM 1495] 395 395 89% 1e-132 54.67% gb|TDZ58291.1| Tyrosinase-like protein orsC [Colletotrichum trifolii] 393 393 79% 6e-132 57.67% gb|TDZ23501.1| Nitroalkane oxidase [Colletotrichum orbiculare MAFF 240422] 409 409 80% 8e-132 57.75% ref|XP_022471338.1| hypothetical protein COR01 10513 [Colletotrichum orchidophilum] 397 397 92% 9e-132 50.78% gb|KXH34366.1| hypothetical protein CSIM01 00277 [Colletotrichum simmondsii] 396 396 92% 2e-131 50.51% gb|KXH69104.1| hypothetical protein CSAL01 01466 [Colletotrichum salicis] 389 389 81% 3e-129 56.19% ref|XP_008090963.1| hypothetical protein GLRG 02114 [Colletotrichum graminicola M1.001 378 378 79% 2e-126 56.44% ref|XP_001227853.1| hypothetical protein CHGG 09926 [Chaetomium globosum CBS 148.51] 373 373 92% 5e-124 50.00% gb|TDZ28941.1| Tyrosinase-like protein orsC [Colletotrichum spinosum] 371 371 73% 2e-122 58.14% gb|ELA37064.1| hypothetical protein CGGC5 3508 [Colletotrichum fructicola Nara gc5] 364 364 72% 1e-121 59.52% ref|XP_007911158.1 putative tyrosinase-like protein [Phaeoacremonium minimum UCRPA7] 363 363 68% 2e-121 59.22% gb|EQB52888.1| hypothetical protein CGLO 07432 [Colletotrichum gloeosporioides Cg-14] 361 361 72% 2e-120 59.86% gb|TEA10724.1| Nitroalkane oxidase [Colletotrichum sidae] 373 373 73% 4e-118 58.33% ref|XP_024731024.1| putative tyrosinase [Meliniomyces bicolor E] 331 331 79% 2e-108 51.38% emb|CDP29730.1| Putative tyrosinase [Podospora anserina S mat+ 326 326 81% 4e-106 50.15% emb|VBB81548.1| Putative tyrosinase [Podospora comtat] 326 326 81% 5e-106 50.15% ref|XP_001273822.1| tyrosinase, putative [Aspergillus clavatus NRRL 1] 326 326 83% 2e-105 50.00% ref|XP_001905273.1| uncharacterized protein PODANS 5 7820 [Podospora anserina S mat+] 323 232 80% 3e-105 50.00% gb|PGH18781.1| hypothetical protein AJ79_00194 [Helicocarpus griseus UAMH5409] 325 325 83% 5e-105 50.15% gb|PBP21500.1| hypothetical protein BUE80 DR007716 [Diplocarpon rosae] 278 278 68% 4e-88 50.17%
TABLE-US-00003 Purification of β-etherase. The heterologously expressed protein was purified using anion-exchange (Q) and size-exclusion chromatography (S.E). Protein concentration and VT221 activity was calculated after each purification step Purification steps Total Protein mg Activity (mU) (nmol/mg/hr) Specific (U/mg) Yield (%) Purification fold Culture filrate 1024 7500 7.32 100 1 Q 29.25 2600 88 34.67 12 S.E 14 1950 139 26 19
TABLE-US-00004 β-etherase substrate specificity Substrate Etherase reactivity Tyrosinase reactivity Tyrosine methyl ester — + L-Dopa (3,4-dihydroxy-L-phenylalanine) — + Dopamine hydrochloride — + Caffeic acid (catechol oxidase substrate) — + 4-Methly-catechol (catechol oxidase substrate) — + Tyrosol (catechol oxidase substrate) — — Tannic acid — — (+)-Catechin hydrate + + Pyrogallol + + 4-Hydroxybenzoic acid + — Quercetin + — Vanillic acid + —
MATERIAL AND METHODS
Wheat Straw Degradation in Shake-Flasks Inoculated with Compost
[0275] Two-liter shake flasks, containing 1 L minimal media and 5% (w/v) milled wheat straw, were inoculated with 1% (w/v) compost. The inoculum was collected from composting wheat straw that had been developed over the period of a year and watered at regular intervals. The inoculum was prepared by blending until homogenized and used on the day of preparation. The minimal media was based on Aspergillus niger minimal media and contained KCI 0.52 g/L, KH.sub.2PO.sub.4 0.815 g/L, K.sub.2HPO.sub.4 1.045 g/L, MgSO.sub.4 1.35 g/L, NaNO.sub.3 1.75 g/L, Hutner’s trace elements (Na.sub.2EDTA.Math.2H.sub.2O 50 g/L, ZnSO.sub.4.Math.7H.sub.2O 22 g/L, H.sub.3BO.sub.3 11.4 g/L, MnCl.sub.2.Math.4H.sub.2O 0.506 g/L, FeSO.sub.4.Math.7H.sub.2O 0.4499 g/L, CoCl.sub.2.Math.6H.sub.2O 0.161 g/L, CuSO.sub.4-5H.sub.2O 0.157 g/L, (NH.sub.4).sub.6Mo.sub.7O.sub.24.Math.4H.sub.2O 0.110 g/L). These flasks were incubated at 30° C. and shaken at 150 rpm. Aliquots (10 mL) containing both the solid and liquid fractions were aseptically collected weekly for eight weeks. The samples were then serially diluted with x1 phosphate-buffered saline to concentrations ranging between 10.sup.-1 and 10.sup.-7. From these dilutions 100 .Math.L samples were used to create spread plates on both nutrient agar (NA) and potato dextrose agar (PDA), in order to culture strains from the composting environment.
Targeted Amplicon Sequencing of 16S and ITS Region
[0276] Genomic DNA was harvested from the compost cultures using a modified CTAB protocol adapted for use on materials with high phenolic contents. From the composting shake flask, 20 mL aliquots were harvested weekly. The biomass was separated from the liquid fraction by centrifugation performed at 4000 g at 4° C., and 0.5 g of biomass removed to a 2 mL screw-cap tube. To this 500 .Math.L of cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) buffer (2% (w/v) CTAB 100 mM Tris-HCI (pH 8.0), 20 mM EDTA (pH 8.0), 2 M NaCl, 2% (w/v) polyvinylpyrrolidone (Mr 40.000), 5% 2-mercaptoethanol (v/v), 10 mM ammonium acetate, was added along with 0.5 g of zirconia beads and 0.5 mL of phenol: chloroform: isoamyl alcohol (25: 24: 1, pH 8.0), before briefly vortexing. The material was then bead-beaten using a TissueLyser II (Qiagen) for 5 min at speed 28/s. A modified phenol-chloroform method was used to extract DNA after cell lysis. The sample was spun for 5 min at max speed to achieve separation of the phases before the aqueous layer was removed to a fresh 2 mL Eppendorf tube. To the aqueous phase chloroform: isoamyl alcohol (21:1) was added, and this was spun and the aqueous phase transferred to a fresh tube, to remove any remaining phenolics. To precipitate the DNA within the sample, an equal volume of ice-cold 100% isopropanol was added and incubated for 1 h. DNA was pelleted by centrifugation at 13,000 rpm for 10 min, and supernatant was removed without disturbing the pellet. The pellet was then washed with 80% ethanol, before being resuspended in DNAse-free water.
[0277] Regions for amplicon sequencing were amplified using Phusion® High-Fidelity DNA Polymerase (Finnzymes OY, Finland) as per manufactures instructions before being purified with Agencourt AMPure XP (Beckman Coulter), and sequenced at the Biorenewables Development Centre (BDC), York, U.K. using an Ion Torrent platform. The primers pairs, for ITS and 16S sequencing, were as follows; ITS1 Fw - TCCGTAGGTGAACCTGCGG (SEQ ID NO 34), Rv - CGCTGCGTTCTTCATCG (SEQ ID NO 35), 16S Fw -AYTGGGYDTAAAGNG (SEQ ID NO 36), Rv-TACNVGGGTATCTAATCC(SEQ ID NO 37). Ribosomal DNA sequence data generated via targeted amplicon sequencing was analyzed using the open-access software Qiime on the University of York’s Technology Facilities linux server. .sup.57 Each fastq file generated from the IonTorrent platform was first demultiplexed and then converted into both fasta and qual file types using Qiimes python script convert_fastaqual_fastq.py. To remove the primer sequences from the reads, the script split_libraries.py was used along with a mapping file generated as per Qiimes instructions. Low-quality reads were removed by filtering out reads under 180 bp long and those without recognizable primers. The orientation of the sequences was then corrected based on the primer location. Operational taxonomic units (OTUs) were then created from the fasta files. These files were picked using the open-reference OTU picking process. To perform this, the script pick_open_reference_otus.py was used. This step also includes taxonomy assignment, sequence alignment, and tree building steps. For the taxonomy assignments of bacterial sequences the default reference database was used, (greengenes gg_13_8 97_otus database),.sup.58,59 and for the fungal ITS sequences the UNITE (alpha release 12_11) database was used..sup.60
Central Composite Design for Media Optimisation
[0278] Media was optimized using a central composite design with rotation..sup.61 It was optimized for the production of both cellulase and xylanase enzymes after seven days on 1.5% wheat straw and minimal media, as assessed by measuring reducing sugar release after incubation on CMC and xylan. The concentrations of both sodium nitrate and yeast extract were varied as part of the optimization. The sodium nitrate concentration was varied between 0 g/L and 3.5 g/L, and yeast extract was varied between 0% and 1% (w/v). Statistica 6.0 software was used to create the experimental design and analyze the results.
[0279] The optimized media for P. putredinis NO1 growth consisted of yeast extract 8.55 g/L, KCI 0.52 g/L, KH.sub.2PO.sub.4 0.815 g/L, K.sub.2HPO.sub.4 1.045 g/L, MgSO.sub.4 1.35 g/L, NaNO.sub.3 1.75 g/L and Hutner’s trace elements.
Characterization of P. Putredinis NO1 Growth on Wheat Straw
[0280] Growth of P. putredinis NO1 was assessed using the dried weight of the biomass present within the culture. Cultures were transferred to pre-weighed and freeze-dried falcon tubes and chilled for 5 min. They were then centrifuged at 4,500 rpm, and the supernatant removed. The biomass was gently rinsed with x1 PBS and tubes were flash-frozen in liquid nitrogen and lyophilized. Each tube was then re-weighed to calculate the dry weight of the biomass present. The total protein content of the cultures was used as an indicator of growth on insoluble materials such as wheat straw. Total protein was extracted by boiling 100 .Math.g of freeze-dried biomass in 1 mL of 0.2% (w/v) sodium dodecyl sulfate, for 5 min to lyse all cells present. Protein was then collected by centrifugation at 14,000 rpm and the supernatant collected into a fresh 50 mL falcon tube. This was repeated three times, without heating, and with vigorous vortexing between each centrifuge step to wash the biomass of any remaining protein. Extracted protein was precipitated with five volumes of ice-cold acetone overnight at -20° C., before being centrifuged at 4500 rpm and the resulting pellet washed with 80% (v/v) ice-cold ethanol. The ethanol-protein mix was then centrifuged again, and the supernatant removed and the pellet air-dried. The protein was then solubilized in 3 mL of H.sub.2O and quantified using the Bradford assay. The ability of an enzyme to cleave polysaccharides and produce products with reducing ends was assessed at each timepoint by incubating 10 .Math.L of cultural supernatant with the 2% (w/v) of either carboxymethylcellulose (CMC) or xylan (beechwood) in 200 .Math.L of 50 mM sodium phosphate at 6.8 and 30° C. Before and after incubation 10 .Math.L aliquots mixed with p-hydroxybenzoic acid hydrazide (PAHBAH), heated to 70° C. for 10 min, and color change detected at 415 nm using a microtitre Tecan Safire2 plate reader..sup.62 A stock solution of the appropriate monosaccharide was assayed to obtain a standard curve for quantification of sugar release.
RNA Extraction from P Putredinis NO1 Sp
[0281] Cultures of P. putredinis NO1 were established in 200 mL shake flasks, containing 20 mL of the optimized growth media and either 1.5% wheat straw or 0.5% glucose. These were incubated at 30° C. with shaking at 180 rpm. To control for varying amounts of cell growth, aliquots of either 0.5 g, 0.3 g and 0.1 g of biomass from the wheat straw cultures were weighed into 2 mL screw-cap tubes that contained 3×3 mm tungsten carbide beads and 1 mL Trizol (Life Technologies). The cells were then disrupted in a TissueLyser II (Qiagen) for either 2×2 min or 2×5 min at 28/s, dependent on the stage of growth. Total RNA was then extracted with the standard Trizol method as per manufacturer’s instructions and extracted RNA was resuspended in 50 .Math.L of nuclease-free water. The quality of RNA was assessed by visualization on agarose gels. To obtain enough RNA for processing six technical replicates were performed for each biological replicate. These were stored at -80° C. after being flash-frozen in liquid nitrogen before further processing could occur. The RNA samples were treated for DNA contamination with RTS DNase kits (Mobio) using standard methods described by the manufacturers. The samples were then cleaned with ZymoResearch RNA Clean &
[0282] Concentrator™ 5 kits, using the manufacturer’s protocol to separate small and large RNA fragments into different fractions. RNA fragments greater than 200 nt were elution into 50 .Math.L of RNase-free water before RNA concentration, and quality was evaluated with the 2200 TapeStation (Aligent). Once total RNA of a suitable quantity and quality was obtained, samples could be enriched for messenger RNA (mRNA). This was performed using Ribo-Zero™ Magnetic Epidemiology rRNA removal kit (RZE1224/MRZ11124C; Illumina) according to the manufacturer’s protocol.
RNA Sequencing
[0283] The Genome Analysis Centre (TGAC), Norwich, U.K, performed the RNA sequencing on an Illumina HiSeq platform. As per the requirements of the sequencing service, 100 ng of enriched mRNA was provided for each sample. From the proved mRNA, cDNA libraries were constructed using the adapted TruSeq RNA v2 protocol (Illumina 15026495 Rev.B). Libraries were then normalized using elution buffer (Qiagen) and pooled in equimolar amounts into one final 12 nM pool. These were then diluted to a final concentration of 10 pM, spiked with 1% PhiX and loaded onto the Illumina cBotTemplate, for hybridization and first extension, using the TruSeq Rapid PE Cluster Kit v1 before the flow cell was transferred onto the Illumina HiSeq2500. Here, the remainder of the clustering process was conducted, and the library pool was run in a single lane for 100 cycles of each paired-end read before samples were demultiplexed. One base-pair mismatch per library was allowed, and reads were converted to FASTq. The raw data was subject to rRNA removal by catching the remaining paired reads after mapping to a modified rRNA_115_tax_silva_v1.0 ribosomal set, using BOWTIE2. The reads were further trimmed to remove adaptor sequences with the ngsShoRT_2.1 method, and libraries were pooled before being assembled by Trinity Software to obtain 37,720 contigs. Then, using this assembly as a reference, the original (unprocessed) individual libraries were mapped and the number of reads counted for each contig. Counts per million (CPM) were converted to reads per kilobase of exon per million reads mapped (RPKM) to normalize for both the depth of sequencing achieved in each sample and length of the contig.
[0284] Emboss GETORF (http://www.bioinformatics.nl/cgi-bin/emboss/getorf) was used to generate putative protein-coding sequences by translating all regions over 300 bp between potential start and stop codons. Putative open reading frames (ORFs) were searched against the NCBI non-redundant protein database and KOG database using BLASTp, and Pfam and dbCAN databases using HMMER3.(45, 81, 82) Local BLAST searches using unique were performed using BLAST+ 2.3.0.(65, 64) Signal peptides were predicted from ORFs using SignalP 4.0.(66, 67)
Protein Extraction
[0285] Supernatant proteins were harvested by collecting samples (20 mL) from the culture supernatant of P. putredinis NO1 and precipitated in five volumes of ice-cold acetone. The acetone fractions were incubated overnight at -20° C., before being centrifuged at 10,000 xg. The resulting pellet was washed with 80% ice-cold acetone, air-dried and resuspended in 0.5x PBS with 0.1% sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS). To selectively extract biomass bound proteins, two grams of biomass collected from the fungal cultures was washed twice with ice-cold 0.5x PBS, before being resuspended and mixed for 1 h at 4° C., in 0.5x PBS with 10 mM EZ-linked biotin (Thermo Scientific). The reaction was then quenched for 30 min with 50 mM Tris-HCL, pH 8, and excess biotin was removed by washing twice with ice-cold 0.5 × PBS. Warmed SDS (2% w/v, at 60° C.) was used to extract the proteins. The mixture was incubated at room temperature for 1 h, centrifuged and precipitated with ice-cold acetone as described above. The resulting pellets were solubilized in 1x PBS containing 0.1% SDS then loaded onto streptavidin columns (Thermo Scientific) that had been pre-washed (0.1% SDS 1× PBS). The proteins were then incubated for 1 h on the column at 4° C., and washed with three column volumes of 0.1% SDS 1x PBS, before being incubated overnight with elution buffer (50 mM DTT in 1 × PBS) at 4° C. Proteins were eluted the following day by the addition of 1 mL elution buffer and the resulting fraction collected. The column was incubated for one hour before this was repeated. In total the elution was performed four times. These fractions were then flash-frozen in liquid nitrogen, freeze-dried, resuspended in 2 mL distilled water and desalted using Zeba, 7 K MWCO columns (Thermo Scientific) following manufacturer’s instructions. Both the supernatant and biotin-tagged proteins were stored in 4-12% (w/v) Bis-Tris acrylamide gels. Protein samples were loaded into the gel, separated electrophoresis for 20 min and stained with InstantBlue (Sigma-Aldrich).
Proteomic LC-MS/MS
[0286] LC-MS/MS was performed to identify proteins within both the supernatant and biotin-labelled fractions. Proteins contained within gel slices were washed with 50% (v/v) aqueous acetonitrile containing 25 mM ammonium bicarbonate, then reduced with 10 mM DTE and S-carbamidomethylated with 50 mM iodoacetamide. Gels were then dehydrated with acetonitrile and digested with 0.2 .Math.g trypsin (Promega) in 25 mM ammonium bicarbonate. The digestion was performed overnight at 37° C. Peptides were extracted with 50% (v/v) aqueous acetonitrile, dried in a vacuum concentrate and resuspended in 0.1% (v/v) aqueous trifluoroacetic acid. Peptides were loaded onto a nanoAcquity UPLC system (Waters) equipped with a nanoAcquity Symmetry C18, 5 .Math.m trap (180 .Math.m × 20 mm Waters) and a nanoAcquity HSS T3 1.8 .Math.m C18 capillary column (75 mm × 250 mm, Waters). The trap was washed with 0.1% (v/v) aqueous formic acid at a flow rate of 10 .Math.L min.sup.-1, before switching to the capillary column. Peptides were separated using a gradient elution of two solvents, 0.1% (v/v) aqueous formic acid (solvent A) and acetonitrile containing 0.1% (v/v) formic acid (solvent B). The flow rate used was 300 nL min.sup.-1, and the column temperature was 60° C. The gradient proceeded linearly from 2% solvent B to 30% over 125 min, then 30-50% over 5 min, before being washed with 95% solvent B for 2.5 min. The column was then re-equilibrated at the initial conditions for 25 min before subsequent injections. The nanoLC system was interfaced with a maXis HD LC-MS/MS System (Bruker Daltonics) with a CaptiveSpray ionization source (Bruker Daltonics). Positive ESI- MS & MS/MS spectra were acquired using AutoMSMS mode. Instrument control, data acquisition and processing were performed using Compass 1.7 software (microTOF control, Hystar and DataAnalysis, Bruker Daltonics). Instrument settings were as follows: ion spray voltage: 1,450 V; dry gas: 3 L min.sup.-1; dry gas temperature 150° C.; collision RF: 1,400 Vpp; transfer time: 120 ms; ion acquisition range: m/z 150-2,000. AutoMSMS settings specified: absolute threshold 200 counts, preferred charge states: 2-4 , singly charged ions excluded. Cycle time: 1 s, MS spectra rate: 5 Hz, MS/MS spectra rate: 5 Hz at 2,500 cts increasing to 20 Hz at 250,000 cts or above. Collision energy and isolation width settings were automatically calculated using the AutoMSMS fragmentation table. A single MS/MS spectrum was acquired for each precursor, with dynamic exclusion for 0.8 min unless the precursor intensity increased fourfold.
Genomic Data Analysis
[0287] The raw data was subject to rRNA removal by catching the remaining paired reads after mapping to a modified rRNA_115_tax_silva_v1.0 ribosomal set, using BOWTIE2. The reads were further trimmed to remove adaptor sequences with the ngsShoRT_2.1 method, and libraries were pooled before being assembled by Trinity Software to obtain 37,720 contigs. Then, using this assembly as a reference, the original (unprocessed) individual libraries were mapped and the number of reads counted for each contig. Counts per million (CPM) were converted to reads per kilobase of exon per Million reads mapped (RPKM) to normalize for both the depth of sequencing achieved in each sample and length of the contig. Emboss GETORF (http://www.bioinformatics.nl/cgi-bin/emboss/getorf) was used to generate putative protein-coding sequences in all six reading frames from the transcriptomic libraries by translating regions over 300 bp long between potential start and stop codons. These putative open reading frames (ORFs) were searched against the NCBI non-redundant protein database and KOG database using BLASTp, the Pfam and dbCAN databases using HMMER3..sup.45,63 Annotations were subsequently mapped back to the contig from which the ORF originated. Local BLAST searches using unique were performed using BLAST+ 2.3.0..sup.64,65 Signal peptides were predicted from ORFs using SignalP 4.0..sup.66,67
Proteomic Data Analysis
[0288] Spectra obtained from the LC-MS/MS analysis were searched against all potential opening reads frames generated from the P. putredinis NO1 transcriptomic library, using Mascot (Matrix Science Ltd., version 2.4). This was locally run through the Bruker ProteinScape interface (version 2.1). Search criteria were specified as follows; the instrument was selected as ESI-QUAD-TOF, trypsin was stated as the digestion enzyme, fixed modifications as carbamidomethyl (C), and variable modifications as oxidation (M). Peptide tolerance was 10 ppm, and MS/MS tolerance 0.1 Da. Results were filtered through ‘Mascot Percolator’ to achieve a global false discovery rate of 1%, as assessed against a decoy database and further adjusted to accept only individual peptides with an expect score of 0.05 or lower. An estimation of relative protein abundance was performed as described by Ishihama,.sup.68 whereby an exponentially modified Protein Abundance Index (emPAI) is used to estimate the relative abundance of proteins in LC-MS/MS experiments. From this index the molar percentage values could be calculated by normalising individual protein Mascot emPAI values against the sum of all emPAI values for each sample. Protein sequences were retrieved using the R package BioStrings..sup.69
Synthesis of Synthetic Substrate GGβ4MU (7-[2-hydroxy-2-(4-hydroxy-3-methoxyphenyl)-1-(hydroxymethyl)ethoxy]-4-methyl-2H-1-benzopyran-2-one).
[0289] The synthetic substrate GGβ4MU was synthesized in 6 steps according to the protocol reported by Weinstein and Gold starting from acetovanillone..sup.44 The pure substrate GGβ4MU was obtained as a white solid following purification using plate chromatography on silica-gel (10% v/v MeOH in CH.sub.2Cl.sub.2). The NMR data were in excellent agreement with those previously reported..sup.44
Identification of β-Etherase from Native Supernatant
[0290] P. putredinis NO1 was cultivated in medium containing 1.5% wheat straw. The supernatant was filtered, and the protein of interest purified by different purification steps, including ammonium sulfate precipitation (ASP), gel filtration using a superdex 200 (GF) on two different columns and anion-exchange chromatography (AE). Briefly, filtered culture supernatant with 0.1% Tween20 was concentrated in a 50 mL stirred Ultracentrifugation Cell (Millipore Corporation, USA) with a Biomax 30 kDa Ultrafiltration Membrane (Millipore Corporation, USA). Ammonium sulfate was slowly added to the filtered culture supernatant to a concentration of 20% while stirring at 4° C. The solution was centrifuged at 10.000 g for 15 min. The pellet was then resuspended in 2 mL buffer A (50 mM Tris-HCI, 100 mM NaCl, 0.1% Tween 20, pH 8.5). Additional ammonium sulfate was added to the supernatant, following the same procedure as described above, to obtain fractions with 30, 40 and 50% ammonium sulfate. After assessing the fractions with the GGβ4MU assay, samples were purified via gel-filtration on a Superdex-200 (GE Healthcare, US), using the ÄKTA system and 50 mM Tris-HCl, 100 mM NaCl, 0.1% Tween 20, pH 8.5. The most active sample was further purified using anion-exchange chromatography. Anion-exchange chromatography was conducted on a DEAE FF column (GE Healthcare, US) with an increasing salt concentration from 0 to 1 M NaCl in 20 min (5 mL/min). A running buffer of 30 mM Tris-HCI, 0.1% Tween 20, at various pH (7.0/7.4/8.5) was used. The Elution buffer was 30 mM Tris-HCI, 1 M NaCl, 0.1% Tween 20.
Gene Cloning and Expression
[0291] The c2092 gene was codon-optimized for expression in E. coli and synthesized into pET151 vector with N-terminal His-tag by Invitrogen. The expression plasmid was transformed into Arctic Express (DE3) competent cells, and successful transformants were selected on LB media containing ampicillin (100 mg L.sup.-1) and gentamycin (10 mg L.sup.-1). Auto-induction media was used for protein production. Inoculated cultures were incubated at 30° C. with shaking at 180 rpm until an optical density of 0.6 at 600 nm was reached. Once a suitable cell density was reached flasks, the temperature was reduced to 11° C. for 48 h before harvesting.
Purification of Recombinant β-Etherase
[0292] Cell pellets were collected by centrifugation at 7000 rpm and 4° C. for 15 min, then suspended in 50 mL (50 mM Tris, 1 mm DTT, pH 8.5). Suspended pellets were then sonicated on ice for using a Misonix S-4000 sonicator at 70 kHz for 4 min, using a program of 3 s off followed by 7 s on. After centrifugation at 17,000 rpm for 45 min to remove cell debris, the protein was purified by anion-exchange chromatography facilitated by an ÄKTA purifier UPC10 with UNICORN 5.31 workstation. Briefly, clear supernatant was loaded onto a mono-Q anion-exchange chromatography HP column (5 mL, GE Healthcare) that had previously been equilibrated with 50 mm Tris, 100 mm NaCl, 10% glycerol pH 8. The protein was then eluted with an increasing NaCl gradient (0 to 1 M) for 100 min at a rate of 1 mL/min. Eluted fractions containing the protein of interest were pooled and concentrated using Millipore Vivaspin20 10 kDa (Sartorius). These were then injected into a superdex 75 (16/60) gel-filtration column (GE Healthcare) that had been equilibrated with 50 mM Tris, 150 mM NaCl, 10% glycerol pH 8.5. Fractions were assessed with SDS-PAGE to determine purity, and the protein concentration was calculated spectroscopically using the extinction coefficient at 280 nm.
Purification and Refolding of Recombinant β-Etherase
[0293] Cell cultures were pelleted through centrifugation. Supernatant was discarded, and pellets were suspended in 5 mL per 100 mL of starting culture 20 mM (4-(2-hydroxyethyl)-1-piperazineethanesulfonic acid) (HEPES) pH 8, before sonicated on ice (70 V, 4 s on, 7 s off for a total of 4 min on). Centrifugation at 10 000 xg was again used to pellet cell debris and inclusion bodies. The pellet was washed with 20 mM HEPES, 2 M Urea, 0.5 M NaCl, 2% TritonTM X-100, pH 8, using the same volume as before, and sonicated and centrifuged as before. The resultant pellet was then resuspended in 20 mM HEPES, 0.5 M NaCl, 5 mM imidazole, 6 M guanidine hydrochloride, 1 mM dithiothreitol (DTT) pH 8, using 10 mL per 100 mL of original cell culture, to solubilise inclusion bodies. After pelleting through centrifugation for a final time, the supernatant was applied to a HisTrap column equilibrated with 20 mM HEPES, 0.5 M NaCl, 5 mM imidazole, 6 M guanidine hydrochloride, 1 mM DTT pH 8. The equilibration buffer was then used to wash the column for a total of 5 CV followed by the same volume of 20 mM HEPES, 0.5 M NaCl, 20 mM imidazole, 6 M urea, 1 mM DTT pH 8. A linear gradient from the final wash buffer to 20 mM HEPES, 0.5 M NaCl, 20 mM imidazole, 0.1 mM CuSO.sub.4, 1 mM DTT pH 8 was then used to refold the tagged protein on the column. This was applied over 30 mL using a flow rate of 0.5 ml/min. To elute refolded protein another linear gradient was applied over 20 mL, starting with 20 mM HEPES, 0.3 M MgCl.sub.2, 20 mM imidazole, 1 mM DTT, pH 8 and ending with the same buffer with the addition of 500 mM imidazole and 10% glycerol. Apart from when otherwise mentioned, the flow rate was kept at 1 mL/ min when using a 1 mL capacity column and 3 mL/min when using a 5 mL capacity column. Fractions of 1.5 mL were collected throughout the elution step, and UV absorbance was used to determine protein content. Fractions with high protein contents were visualised using SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) and the presence of the recombinant protein confirmed through western blot analysis. Protein activity was confirmed through the measurement of 4MU from the GGβ4MU assay after removal of imidazole and DTT using Zeba™ Spin Desalting Columns, 7K MWCO (ThermoFisher) or Slide-A-Lyzer™ Dialysis Cassettes 10 K MWCO (ThermoFisher).
Fluorescence Assay for β-Etherase
[0294] Enzyme activity was measured in 1 mL reaction containing 10 .Math.L 4MU/GGβ4MU (synthetic fluorescent substrate 10 mM) and appropriate concentration of pure protein in 50 mM Tris-HCI, 100 mM NaCl, pH 8.5, 5 mM CuSO.sub.4. The reaction was incubated at 30° C. for 1 h. Formation of 4-methylumbelliferone (4MU) was monitored using an RF-1500 fluorometric analyzer. After 0 h and 1 h of incubation 100 .Math.L of the reaction mixture was taken and added to 50 .Math.L of 100 mM glycine-NaOH buffer (pH 10.0). One unit of the enzyme was defined as the amount that released 1 nmol of 4 MU/h from the substrate. Five replicate were taken for each sample, and control reactions of boiled enzyme and wheat straw treated with buffer only were also performed.
Enzyme Properties
[0295] The effect of pH and temperature on enzyme activity was investigated by varying the pH of the reaction mixtures using 50 mM Tris-HCI buffer from pH 7.0 to 9.5, 50 mM glycine-NaOH buffer at pH range 9.0 to 10.5 and 50 mM Na.sub.2HPO.sub.4-NaOH buffer at pH range 10.5 to 12. The optimum temperature of enzyme activity was determined at various temperatures ranging from 20° C. to 70° C. Assays were performed as described in the previous section.
Phenol Oxidase Assay
[0296] Specificity was investigated by incubating 1 mM of each substrate of interest with the enzyme in 100 .Math.L Tris pH 8.5 buffer at room temperature. Activity was determined by monitoring the change in Ultraviolet-Visible absorbance spectra (220 - 750 nm) of aliquots using a NanoDrop 8000 Microvolume UV-Vis spectrophotometer (Thermo Scientific). Scans were performed at regular intervals over 2 h.
Extraction of Tricin
[0297] Wheat straw was ground to <1 mm using a cyclone mill (Retsch) and washed several times with 50 mM Tris pH 8 to remove residual surface sugars. In 1 mL reactions, 100 mg of washed wheat straw was incubated with an appropriate concentration of pure enzyme in 50 mM Tris buffer at pH 8 with 5 mM CuSO.sub.4. Reactions were incubated overnight at 30° C. with shaking. Control reactions were performed using wheat straw incubated with boiled β-etherase or with buffer only. Tricin was extracted based upon Karambelkar..sup.70 Briefly, 1 mL of ethyl acetate was added to 100 .Math.L of the reaction supernatant. This was homogenized before being centrifuged for 5 min at 13,000 rpm. The ethyl acetate layer was transferred into new tubes and evaporated using a centrifugal evaporator at 55° C. before being resuspended in 100 .Math.L 50% H.sub.2O, 50% acetonitrile. This was analyzed with a Waters 2996 photodiode array detector Separations Module HPLC system, column used was C18-5 .Math.M preparative column (4.6 × 250 mm, Waters, X-Bridge, Made in Ireland). The mobile phase was 0.1% acetic acid in water (A), and methanol (B) and a linear gradient was used; 95% A (5 min), 70% A (25 min), 0% A (30 min), 95% A (5 min), the flow rate was 1.0 mL/min. After identification through comparisons with authentic standards, based on retention time and UV spectrum, peaks were manually collected and the mass confirmed with mass spectroscopy.
β-Etherase Boosting Saccharification with Cellulase Enzymes
[0298] For saccharification reactions, biomass pretreated with β-etherase was incubated with 1.2 .Math.g/mL enzyme cocktail (4:1 Celluclast: novo 188 (Novozymes)) in 50 mM sodium acetate at pH 4.5 and incubated overnight at 37-40° C. with shaking. This was performed alongside a control reaction with buffer only. Solids were removed by centrifugation, and residual protein was precipitated with 80% ethanol. The supernatant, containing mono- and oligosaccharides, was dried with a centrifugal evaporator before samples were resuspended in ultra-pure water and filtered through a 0.2 .Math.m polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) filter. Five replicates from each sample were investigated, and carbohydrate composition was analyzed by high-performance anion-exchange chromatography (HPAEC).
High-Performance Anion-Exchange Chromatography (HPAEC)
[0299] High-performance anion-exchange chromatography was used to analyze monosaccharide release after saccharification. Briefly, 5 .Math.L of samples or standards were injected on a CarboPac PA20 3 × 150 mm analytical column via a CarboPac PA20 3×0 mm guard column using Chromeleon 6.8 Chromatography Data Systems software (Dionex). Sugars were separated at a flow rate of 0.4-0.5 mL min.sup.-1 at a temperature of 25° C. as follows: after equilibration of the column with 100% H.sub.2O, samples were separated in a linear gradient of 100% H.sub.2O to 99%-1% of H.sub.2O-0.2 M NaOH for 5 min, then constant for 10 min, followed by a linear gradient to 47.5%-22.5%-30% of H.sub.2O-0.2 M NaOH-0.5 M NaOAc/0.1 M NaOH in 7 min and then kept constant for 15 min. After washing the column with 0.2 M NaOH for 8 min it was re-equilibrated with 100% H.sub.2O for 10 min before the injection of the next sample. Carbohydrates were detected by ICS-3000 PAD system with an electrochemical gold electrode, identified by comparison with retention times of external standards (arabinose, fucose, galactose, glucose, glucuronic acid, mannose, rhamnose, and xylose) and quantified through the integration of these known standards.
Lignin Isolation
[0300] Enzyme lignins, representing essentially all of the lignin in the sample, were prepared following ball-milling of the cell wall isolate as previously described.(75-77, 78)
NMR Analysis
[0301] 2D NMR of enzyme lignins (EL) in 4:1 v/v DMSO-d.sub.6:pyridine-d.sub.5 were acquired on a Bruker Biospin (Billerica, MA) Avance 700 MHz spectrometer equipped with a 5-mm QCI .sup.1H/.sup.31P/.sup.13 C/.sup.15 N QCI cryoprobe with inverse geometry (proton coils closest to the sample), as described previously.(76,77) Volume-integration of contours in HSQC plots used TopSpin 4.07 (Mac version) software, and no correction factors were used. The data represent volume-integrals only, and data are presented on an S + G + H = 100% basis (
Statistical Analysis
[0302] Where mentioned two tail ANOVAs were performed using R core package “stats”.(83)
Example 1 Isolation of Parascedosporium Putredinis NO1
[0303] We inoculated liquid cultures containing wheat straw as the sole carbon source with samples of wheat straw-enriched compost and tracked the dynamics of the resulting microbial community using targeted amplicon sequencing during cultivation. Sequencing of 16S ribosomal RNA genes generated over three million reads from the prokaryotic community over the whole time course, which clustered together to form 25,304 operational taxonomic units (OTUs) (
Example 2 Omics Analysis of Wheat Straw Degradation by P. Putredinis NO1
[0304] We confirmed that P. putredinis NO1 could grow on wheat straw as a sole carbon source and optimized the composition of growth media for cellulase and xylanase production using a central composite design (
[0305] As the macromolecular structure of lignocellulose prohibits intracellular degradation, many enzymes for its deconstruction must be secreted. We therefore performed LC-MS/MS analysis on protein samples collected directly from the culture supernatant, and separately from those bound to insoluble components of the culture using a biotin-labelling method designed to enrich for proteins tightly bound to the residual biomass..sup.26 We identified 3,671 proteins across all samples, including 1,037 proteins present in only wheat straw conditions (
[0306] The most abundant CAZy protein family, accounting for 3.7% and 3.6% of the respective supernatant and biotin-labelled fractions on the fourth day, were GH6s, which may be endoglucanases or processive cellobiohydrolases. These, along with GH7s, often constitute the major cellulases in filamentous fungi..sup.27 The GH6 family, is represented by four distinct proteins within the proteome, included the most abundant single protein - c7229_g3_i1_1, a putative cellobiohydrolase with an 85.89% sequence identity to a cellulase (XP_016646396.1) from Scedosporium apiospermum. Other abundant GHs likely active on cellulose include GH7 (typically cellobiohydrolases or endoglucanases), GH5 and GH45 (often endoglucanases) and GH1 and 3 (typically glucosidases)..sup.28
[0307] Efficient lignocellulose deconstruction demands a combination of cellulolytic and hemicellulolytic enzymes that work cooperatively. Enzymes related to the depolymerization of arabinoxylan (major hemicellulose of wheat straw), were well represented within the exoproteome. Nine proteins were identified with homology to endo β-1-4-xylanases (GH10 and GH11), which hydrolyse the arabinoxylan backbone, and five proteins were identified as putative β-1,4-xylosidases that act on the resultant fragments to produce xylose monomers (GH3, GH31, GH43_1, GH43_11, GH43_36). Also of note were the GH43 subfamilies GH43_1, GH43_21, GH43_22, GH43_26 and GH43_36 that were abundant within the secretome, including putative β-D-xylosidases, α-L-arabinofuranosidase, and β-1,3-galactosidase activities. Fifteen GH43 subfamily members were identified, with nine proteins showing closest homology to known arabinofuranosidases.
[0308] Three proteins, belonging to the CE1 family, showed significant sequence homology to feruloyl esterases. Ferulic acid is esterified to the arabinose side chain of arabinoxylans, and through the formation of diferulate bridges and ester-ether linkages allows the respective formation of covalent interactions between arabinoxylan chains and lignin. Feruloyl esterases, therefore, are thought to aid the solubilization of plant cell wall polysaccharides by the hydrolysis of the ester link that exists between ferulic acid residues and arabinose, thereby disrupting the crosslinking of cell wall components..sup.29 Putative acetyl xylan esterases (3 in CAZy family CE1 and 3 in CE5) were also observed and are known to facilitate the degradation of xylan through the removal of acetyl substitutions..sup.30
[0309] The CAZy auxiliary activity (AA) class is classified as containing enzymes that act in conjunction with carbohydrate-active enzymes through redox activities. Interestingly, 69 putative proteins from the AA class were detected in the exosecretome, more than many lignocellulose-degrading fungi contain in their total genome,.sup.31 suggesting an important role for the oxidative degradation of lignocellulose in P. putredinis NO1. The AA9 family, which along with the AA10, AA11, AA13, AA14 and AA15 families constitute the lytic polysaccharide monooxygenases (LPMOs) - a class of copper metalloenzymes that catalyse the oxidative cleavage of glycosidic bonds in multiple polysaccharide substrates including chitin, cellulose, and xylan,.sup.32.33 were highly represented within the exosecretome. In total, we identified nineteen putative LPMOs (16 AA9s; 2 AA11s; 1 AA13), fifteen of which were upregulated tenfold or more between glucose and wheat straw conditions. Fittingly, 16 AA3s (glucose-methanol-choline (GMC) oxidoreductase) and 9 AA7s (glucooligosaccharide oxidase), which have been shown to facilitate the activity of the LPMOs through electron shuttling,.sup.34,35 were also present within wheat straw cultures.
[0310] Five putative multicopper oxidase proteins were also observed - two from the AA1_3 subfamily (Laccase-like multicopper oxidase) and one from the AA1_2 subfamily (Ferroxidase). Laccase-like multicopper oxidases are of unknown function but have been implicated in lignin degradation, as well as other diverse functions (iron homeostasis, offense/defence),.sup.36 whereas ferroxidases have been reported to be involved in lignocellulose degradation in Ascomycetes, in which they generate hydroxyl radicals via the Fenton reaction..sup.37 Established lignin depolymerizing enzymes associated with the white-rot fungal decay of lignin, including laccases from the AA1_1 subfamily or peroxidases from the AA2 family, were not present within the libraries, perhaps not surprising given the P. putredinis NO1 sits within the Ascomycota phylum, and as such is closer in relation to the soft-rots.
[0311] Despite the apparent lack of known ligninases in P. putredinis NO1, a putative AA6 (1,4-benzoquinone reductase) associated with the intracellular biodegradation of aromatic compounds was present within the supernatant and may have a role in the metabolism of lignin breakdown products..sup.31,38
[0312] Of key interest to us was the potential of P. putredinis NO1 to produce novel lignocellulolytic activities, particularly those able to boost lignocellulose deconstruction via the modification and solubilization of lignin. An unknown protein, c2092, identified in the exosecretome was subsequently found to have β-etherase activity and no CAZy identification.
Example 3 A New β-Etherase
[0313] The β-ether motif with its characteristic β—O—4 inter-unit linkage is the most abundant in lignin, estimated at representing over 50% of the total inter-unit linkages..sup.39 Enzymes employing β-ether cleavage mechanisms can deconstruct synthetic and extracted lignin;.sup.40,41,42 these bacterial etherases that have been characterized to date, however, are intracellular proteins, and are glutathione- or NAD.sup.+- dependent, suggesting that in nature they are not directly involved in the breakdown of the lignin macromolecule, but rather its smaller, membrane-transportable oligomers. An extracellular fungal protein displaying β-etherase activity was previously purified from the supernatant of the Chaetomium sp. 2BW- 1, although its identity remains unknown..sup.43
[0314] Using a synthetic lignin model compound GGβ4MU (7-[2-hydroxy-2-(4-hydroxy-3-methoxyphenyl)-1-(hydroxymethyl)ethoxy]-4-methyl-2/7-1-benzopyran-2-one) containing a β-methylumbelliferyl ether, guaiacylglycerol-β-(4-methylumbelliferyl) ether (
[0315] The putative β-etherase was initially purified by ammonium sulfate precipitation of the proteins in the culture supernatant to decrease sample pigmentation and reduce protein-protein interactions. This treatment facilitated further purification by size-exclusion and anion-exchange chromatography. Using shotgun proteomics, we identified c2092, a 44.5 kDa protein present in the purified fraction that contained a predicted signal peptide. Analysis of the transcriptomic and proteomic data revealed this protein was strongly upregulated in the presence of wheat straw and present in both the supernatant and biotin-labelled proteomic libraries throughout the growth of P. putredinis NO1 on wheat straw (
Example 4 Experimental Confirmation of β-Etherase Activity
[0316] To determine if c2092 was responsible for the observed β-etherase activity, we heterologously expressed the codon-optimized sequence in Escherichia coli. The recombinant protein was purified (Table 3), and the β-etherase activity of the protein was confirmed by determining the level of fluorescence released after incubation with GGβ4MU (
Example 5 Release of Tricin and Lignin Units from Wheat Straw
[0317] Tricin has recently been described as a subunit in the lignin of monocot species, incorporated through a 4—O—β linkage..sup.11 As wheat straw contains relatively high concentrations of tricin compared to other agriculturally relevant feedstocks,.sup.8 we assessed the ability of the β-etherase to release tricin from wheat straw. The β-etherase was incubated with wheat straw for sixteen hours under physiological conditions (pH 8.5 and 30° C.). Reaction products were monitored by High-Performance Liquid-Chromatography (HPLC), and a peak corresponding to tricin was identified by reference to an authentic standard and confirmed by mass spectrometry. Under the growth conditions used for P. putredinis NO1, a significantly higher concentration of tricin was present in the reaction supernatant of wheat straw with the β-etherase compared to incubations with buffer alone (ANOVA, F(2,12)=44.67, p<0.05) (
[0318] NMR (
[0319] We further tested the activity of the β-etherase on alternative feedstocks, including sugarcane bagasse and rice straw. A smaller amount of tricin was released from sugarcane bagasse compared to wheat straw; however, in contrast to assays with wheat straw, p-coumaric acid was significantly enriched (ANOVA, F(2,12)=44.67, p<0.05) (
[0320] As mushroom tyrosinase has been reported to cleave β-ether linkages promiscuously,.sup.50 we tested its β-etherase activity on these lignocellulosic substrates under equivalent conditions. We observed less tricin, p-coumaric acid, and p-hydroxybenzaldehyde production in the reaction mixtures containing mushroom tyrosinase compared to the P. putredinis NO1 β-etherase treatments. Tricin is a known tyrosinase inhibitor that binds non-competitively to the hydrophobic pocket of the protein,.sup.53 and p-coumaric acid has been characterized as having a mixed-type inhibition effect..sup.54 This inhibition, through the non-reversible binding of the reaction products, could go some way to explaining why mushroom tyrosinase displays little activity towards the lignin macromolecule.
Example 6 β-Etherase Pretreatment Boosts Saccharification
[0321] The recalcitrance of lignocellulose to degradation requires that feedstocks are pretreated in order to disrupt lignin, before efficient saccharification can be achieved using current commercial enzymatic cocktails. These pretreatments are typically physico-chemical, using a combination of heat and pressure with acid, alkali or organic solvents. As these industrial processes are energy-intensive and environmentally damaging, the use of biological treatments, performed under relatively mild conditions, are desirable. To investigate if the application of the β-etherase would improve saccharification rates, we treated sugarcane bagasse, wheat straw, and rice straw with β-etherase for sixteen hours before the addition of commercial cellulases. Sugarcane bagasse demonstrated a major improvement in digestibility after pretreatment with β-etherase resulting in a significant increase in glucose, xylose, and arabinose compared to the untreated control (2-fold, 5-fold and 23-fold, respectively) after saccharification (
Example 7: Enzyme Homology and Identification
[0322] P. putredinis NO1 is able to dominate cultures in the latter stages of wheat straw degradation in a mixed microbial community, in liquid culture, when easily accessible polysaccharides have been exhausted. Using a combination of omics approaches, we have identified a diverse range of potentially industrially relevant carbohydrate-active enzymes, including a large number of enzymes associated with the oxidative attack on lignocellulose. In particular, we have identified a new extracellular β-etherase that is preferentially expressed in the presence of wheat straw and demonstrated that this enzyme can boost enzymatic hydrolysis by cellulases as well as selectively release the pharmaceutically relevant flavonoid tricin from monocot lignin. The cleavage of β-ether bonds most likely aids the breakdown of lignocellulose in natural environments. We contend that this ability to deconstruct and modify lignin is important for P. putredinis NO1 to be able to out-compete other microbial species during the latter stage of plant biomass degradation. Preferential removal of tricin subunits has been described by the white-rot fungi, Pleurotus eryngii, during the selective delignification of wheat straw and has been proposed to be key to lignocellulose degradation, although the enzyme activity that facilitated tricin release was not identified..sup.56 When the publicly available genome of P. eryngii was examined for the presence of proteins with homology to the β-etherase from P. putredinis NO1 no significant hits were detected. As the protein described as being responsible for β-etherase activity from Chaetomium sp. 2BW-1 was not identified to sequence level, it is unclear whether it shares homology to the enzyme described here; however, the proteins appear to be distinct as the reported sizes differ by 20 kDa..sup.43 Taken together, these observations suggest that multiple, structurally dissimilar, enzymes in the natural environment may mediate ether linkage disruption in lignocellulose-degrading microbes. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first identification and characterization of an extracellular β-etherase that has no cofactor requirement for activity capable of selectively releasing tricin from lignin and could have potential biotechnological applications.
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