Abstract A membrane-bound enzyme catalysing the cleavage of 13-hydroperoxy-(Z)-9,(E)-11-oc-tadecadienoic acid (13-LHPO) and 13-hydroperoxy-(Z)-9,(E)-11,(Z)-15-octadecadienoic acid (13-LnHPO) to C6-aldehydes was isolated and partially purified from apples and tomatoes. Attempts to employ Ultrogel AcA 34 and AcA 22 in a gel chromatographic purification step were partially frustrated by reaggregation phenomena. However, by using Sepharose CL-4 B an enzyme fraction (MW 200 000 Da) with lipoxygenase and fatty acid hydroperoxide cleaving activity could be separated from a high molecular-weight active eluate. By applying preparative isoelec tric focussing to the tomato protein we succeeded in separating the fatty acid cleaving activity from the lipoxygenase, because o f their different isoelectric points of pH 5.8 -6 .1 and pH 5.0, respectively, An 8.4-fold purification of the fatty acid cleaving activity was achieved. A pH-optimum of 5.5 and a Km-value of 2.6 × 10-5 м/1 for the 13-hydroperoxide of linoleic acid were measured. p-Chloromercuribenzoic acid (1 mм) showed significant inhibitory effect on the fatty acid hydroperoxide cleaving enzyme, but no evidence o f inhibition was found with 1 mм H2O2, KCN, DABCO and EDTA or superoxide dismutase (270 U). The maximum amount of fatty acid hydroperoxide decomposition (C6-aldehyde formation) was determined to be 59%.
