Cold-active pectinolytic activity produced by filamentous fungi associated with Antarctic marine sponges

Gabriela Poveda,Inmaculada Vaca,Renato Chávez,Carlos Gil-Durán,Gloria Levicán

doi:10.1186/s40659-018-0177-4

Gabriela Poveda, Inmaculada Vaca + Show 3 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1186/s40659-018-0177-4

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Abstract

BackgroundPectinase enzymes catalyze the breakdown of pectin, a key component of the plant cell wall. At industrial level, pectinases are used in diverse applications, especially in food-processing industry. Currently, most of the industrial pectinases have optimal activity at mesophilic temperatures. On the contrary, very little is known about the pectinolytic activities from organisms from cold climates such as Antarctica. In this work, 27 filamentous fungi isolated from marine sponges collected in King George Island, Antarctica, were screened as new source of cold-active pectinases.ResultsIn semi-quantitative plate assays, 8 out 27 of these isolates showed pectinolytic activities at 15 °C and one of them, Geomyces sp. strain F09-T3-2, showed the highest production of pectinases in liquid medium containing pectin as sole carbon source. More interesting, Geomyces sp. F09-T3-2 showed optimal pectinolytic activity at 30 °C, 10 °C under the temperature of currently available commercial mesophilic pectinases.ConclusionFilamentous fungi associated with Antarctic marine sponges are a promising source of pectinolytic activity. In particular, pectinases from Geomyces sp. F09-T3-2 may be potentially suitable for biotechnological applications needing cold-active pectinases. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report describing the production of pectinolytic activity from filamentous fungi from any environment in Antarctica.

Highlights

Pectinase enzymes catalyze the breakdown of pectin, a key component of the plant cell wall
Screening of pectinolytic activity in fungi from Antarctic marine sponges Nineteen out 27 strains grew on Czapek-pectin medium, but did not show halo of degradation in the plate assay at 15 °C, suggesting that they have poor pectinolytic activity at low temperature
The rest of the isolates showed different degree of intensity of the pectinolytic activity by the halo/colony ratio (Fig. 1). All these fungi had similar behavior, with enzymatic activity index (EAI) around 1.5–2.0 (Fig. 1). These eight fungi were used to estimate their production of pectinolytic activity in liquid medium

Summary

Introduction

Pectinase enzymes catalyze the breakdown of pectin, a key component of the plant cell wall. 27 filamentous fungi isolated from marine sponges collected in King George Island, Antarctica, were screened as new source of cold-active pectinases. Among the macromolecules that compose the plant cell wall, pectin is one of the most abundant and complex. In. According to its complex structure, biodegradation of pectin requires a pool of several enzymes, collectively named as pectinases. According to its complex structure, biodegradation of pectin requires a pool of several enzymes, collectively named as pectinases These pectinases include pectin methyl esterases, pectin acetyl esterases, polygalacturonases, polymethylgalacturonases, polygalacturonate lyases, polymethylgalacturonate lyases, rhamnogalacturonase, arabinases and xylogalacturonases [2]. In addition to the improvement of mash filtering, pectinases can be used to improve the juice extraction from

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