A novel milk-clotting enzyme from Aspergillus oryzae and A. luchuensis is an aspartic endopeptidase PepE presumed to be a vacuolar enzyme

Aspergillus oryzae RIB40 has 11 aspartic endopeptidase genes. We searched for milk-clotting enzymes based on the homology of the deduced amino acid sequence with chymosins. As a result, we identified a milk-clotting enzyme in A. oryzae. We expected other Aspergillus species to have a homologous enzyme with milk-clotting activity, and we found the most homologous aspartic endopeptidase from A. luchuensis had milk-clotting activity. Surprisingly, two enzymes were considered as vacuole enzymes according to a study on A. niger proteases. The two enzymes from A. oryzae and A. luchuensis cleaved a peptide between the 105Phe-106Met bond in κ-casein, similar to chymosin. Although both enzymes showed proteolytic activity using casein as a substrate, the optimum pH values for milk-clotting and proteolytic activities were different. Furthermore, the substrate specificities were highly restricted. Therefore, we expected that the Japanese traditional fermentation agent, koji, could be used as an enzyme source for cheese production.

Tobacco BY2 cells expressing recombinant cardosin B as an alternative for production of active milk clotting enzymes

Cynara cardunculus L. or cardoon is a plant that is used as a source of milk clotting enzymes during traditional cheese manufacturing. This clotting activity is due to aspartic proteases (APs) found in the cardoon flower, named cyprosins and cardosins. APs from cardoon flowers display a great degree of heterogeneity, resulting in variable milk clotting activities and directly influencing the final product. Producing these APs using alternative platforms such as bacteria or yeast has proven challenging, which is hampering their implementation on an industrial scale. We have developed tobacco BY2 cell lines as an alternative plant-based platform for the production of cardosin B. These cultures successfully produced active cardosin B and a purification pipeline was developed to obtain isolated cardosin B. The enzyme displayed proteolytic activity towards milk caseins and milk clotting activity under standard cheese manufacturing conditions. We also identified an unprocessed form of cardosin B and further investigated its activation process. The use of protease-specific inhibitors suggested a possible role for a cysteine protease in cardosin B processing. Mass spectrometry analysis identified three cysteine proteases containing a granulin-domain as candidates for cardosin B processing. These findings suggest an interaction between these two groups of proteases and contribute to an understanding of the mechanisms behind the regulation and processing of plant APs. This work also paves the way for the use of tobacco BY2 cells as an alternative production system for active cardosins and represents an important advancement towards the industrial production of cardoon APs.

PRODUCTION AND PARTIAL CHARACTERIZATION OF A MILK-CLOTTING PROTEINASE PRODUCED BY BACILLUS SUBTILIS SMDFS-2B MN715837 IN SUBMERGED CULTURES

This study focused on the production and partial characterization of a milk-clotting protease produced by Bacillus subtilis SMDFS 2B in submerged cultures, under partially optimized conditions. The crude enzyme was recovered in the culture supernatant and concentrate was produced after cell removal and subsequent dialysis. Inhibition studies were conducted employing four distinct protease inhibitors: Pepstatin-A, Phenylmethane-sulphonyl-fluoride (PMSF), Ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA), and iodoacetamide (IA). The effect of temperature, pH, metal ions and substrate concentration on milk-clotting activity were also evaluated. The thermal stability of the enzyme was determined by incubating the crude enzyme at a temperature value ranging from 35 oC to 60 oC. Similarly, pH stability was determined at pH values ranging between 4.5 and 8.0. The highest milk-clotting activity was observed at a temperature of 55 oC and pH 5.5. The crude enzyme preparation remained stable on incubation at 35 oC and 40 oC for 15 min and at pH 5.5. The enzyme also showed the lowest residual milk-clotting activity in the presence of EDTA (7.94%) and Pepstatin-A (26.71%). The addition of Mg2+ and Mn2+ significantly increased milk-clotting activity. The enzyme also showed an elevation in its apparent milk-clotting activity upon increasing the substrate (skim-milk) concentration. Thus, the milk-clotting protease produced by B. subtilis SMDFS 2B by submerged fermentation revealed some interesting milk-clotting characteristics. This may open the way for applications in the food and dairy industries.

Expression of recombinant cardosin B in tobacco BY2 cells: an alternative system for the production of active milk clotting enzymes

Cynara cardunculus L. or cardoon is a plant that is used as a source of milk clotting enzymes during traditional cheese manufacturing. This clotting activity is due to aspartic proteases (APs) found in the cardoon flower, named cyprosins and cardosins. APs from cardoon flowers display a great degree of heterogeneity, resulting in variable milk clotting activities and directly influencing the final product. Producing these APs using alternative platforms such as bacteria or yeast has proven challenging, which is hampering their implementation on an industrial scale. We have developed tobacco BY2 cell lines as an alternative plant-based platform for the production of cardosin B. These cultures successfully produced active cardosin B and a purification pipeline was developed to obtain isolated cardosin B. The enzyme displayed proteolytic activity towards milk caseins and milk clotting activity under standard cheese manufacturing conditions. We also identified an unprocessed form of cardosin B and further investigated its activation process. The use of protease-specific inhibitors suggested a possible role for a cysteine protease in cardosin B processing. Mass spectrometry analysis identified three cysteine proteases containing a granulin-domain as candidates for cardosin B processing. These findings suggest an interaction between these two groups of proteases and contribute to an understanding of the mechanisms behind the regulation and processing of plant APs. This work also paves the way for the use of tobacco BY2 cells as an alternative production system for active cardosins and represents an important advancement towards the industrial production of cardoon APs.

DEVELOPMENT OF A PRODUCER OF RECOMBINANT MARAL CHYMOSIN BASED ON THE YEAST KLUYVEROMYCES LACTIS

A plasmid vector pSVB was developed, which allows integrating an expression cassette containing the maral prochymosin gene into the genome of the yeast Kluyveromyces lactis. Producer strains have been obtained that ensure the accumulation of recombinant maral chymosin in the culture medium with a milk-clotting activity of up to 145 AU / ml.

Optimization of Crude Papaya (Carica papaya) Protease in Soft-Unripened Cheese Preparation

The use of plant protease instead of chymosin for producing cheese has become a trend which is aimed at lacto-vegetarian consumers and religion based ecological markets. In this context, the present investigation was carried out in order to utilize milk clotting enzyme from Papaya (Carica papaya). Numerical optimization study revealed that maximum milk clotting activity was achieved at pH 6.5, temperature 70℃ and enzyme concentration 1 g/1000 ml milk using papaya protease as coagulant. Protein, ash and calcium showed no significant (p>0.05) difference among the cheeses made using different coagulants. However, significantly (p<0.05) higher levels of moisture and ash, and lower levels of fat were observed in the cheese produced by papaya protease compared to that made using rennet. Papaya protease significantly enhanced the spreadability of cheese while the other sensory properties were similar to the control except aftertaste. The results revealed that the papaya latex as crude papaya protease may have potential application for the manufacture of soft-unripened cheese and further could be utilized as a milk coagulant in cheese making.

Characteristics of Curds With Milk Clotting Enzyme from Indonesian Local Isolate of Lactic Acid Bacteria

To get the potential of lalcat acid bacteria isolate to produce Milk Clotting Enzyme (MCE), it is necessary to screen milk clotting activity both quantitatively and qualitatively. Through qualitative observation, the characteristics of the curd resulting from enzyme activity can be obtained. MCE is a protease that has the characteristics of milking. Based on the results of this observational research, the curd characteristic produced can be used as a benchmark to determine the length of time of fermentation and optimization of the determination of ammonium sulfate precipitation concentration. Isolate BAL shows the results of a compact curd at a fermentation time of 25 hours at 37 ℃ and the optimization results of the deposition of ammonium sulfate which shows the characteristics of a compact curd by 45% ammonium sulfate.

Sifat Fisik dan Akseptabilitas Keju yang Ditambahkan CaCl2 Menggunakan Ekstrak Jahe Merah

Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui pengaruh penambahan berbagai konsentrasi kalsium klorida (CaCl2) pada proses koagulasi susu menggunakan ekstrak jahe merah terhadap sifat fisik dan akseptabilitas keju. Penelitian menggunakan analisis statistik Rancangan Acak Lengkap (RAL) yang terdiri atas 3 tiga perlakuan penambahan CaCl2 dengan tingkat konsentrasi P1 (0,01% b/v), P2 (0,02% b/v) dan P3 (0,03% b/v) dengan pengulangan sebanyak 6 enam kali. Hasil penelitian menunjukan bahwa penambahan CaCl2 meningkatkan nilai persentase rendemen, dan milk clotting activity serta memberikan hasil yang sama terhadap akseptabilitas pada produk fresh cheese. Penambahan konsentrasi CaCl2 sebanyak 0,02% memberikan hasil terbaik dengan persentase rendemen sebesar 13,03% dan milk clotting activity sebesar 1165,39 SU/ml serta menunjukkan nilai akseptabilitas yang dapat diterima oleh panelis.