Pectinase

Description

Pectinase is a complex enzyme consisting of pectolyase, pectozyme, and polygalacturonase. It is able to break down pectin, a kind of polysaccharide existing in plant cell wall. Pectin is It functions optimally at temperatures between 45 and 55 °C and pH between 3 and 6.5. Owing to this property, Pectinase is often used in processes demanding the degradation of plant materials such as speeding up the extraction process of fruit juice. More importantly, through breaking down pectin, which is an important diet component of human being, pectinase can positively affect the digestive system, maintain intestinal bacteria balance and promote colon health. Pectinase is also useful during the production of wine for aiding the extraction of flavours from the mash. Pectinase is also used for retting. It is usually obtained from the fermentation of fungi such as Aspergillus Niger.

Sources

Many molds and small amounts of bacteria and yeasts can produce pectinase, mainly Aspergillus and Bacillus, others including Penicillium (Penicillium expansum, Penicillium griseoroseum, etc), Sclerotium rolfsii, Rhizoctonia solani, Mucor pusilus, Mucor mucedo, Cloctridium thermosaccharolyticum, Rhizopus stolonifer, Aureobasiduim pullulans, Neurospora rassa, Sporotrichum thermophile, etc. As Aspergillus niger in fungi belongs to GRAS (General Regarded As Safe), its metabolites are safe, so currently marketed food grade pectinase is mainly from Aspergillus niger, and the optimum pH value is generally in the acidic range. With the continuous improvement of molecular biology techniques, gene cloning technology can also be used to achieve expression of pectinase in other microbial hosts.

Physical properties

The molecular weight of pectinase is generally between 20kD and 60kD, and most of them exist as monomeric enzymes. Pectinase activity is usually in the range of pH 3.0 to 9.0, with an isoelectric point of 4.0 to 9.0. Among them, an optimum pH of a hydrolase is 4.0 to 6.5, and its action does not require the participation of Ca2+. The optimum pH of the penctin lyase is 8.0 to 10.0, and its action requires Ca2+ involvement. The pectinase produced by different strains has different properties. Common purification methods of pectinase include ammonium sulfate precipitation, acetone precipitation, ion exchange chromatography and gel filtration chromatography.

Classification

Pectinase can be divided into four types: protopectinase, polygalacturonase, penctin lyase (PL), and pectinesterase (PE). Protopectalase can promote the dissolution of pectin. According to its catalytic mechanism, protopectinase is divided into two types: Type A pectinase and Type B pectinase. The former mainly acts on the inner polygalacturonic acid region of protopectin. The latter mainly acts on the outer polysaccharide chains of the galacturonic acid chains and cell wall components. Polygalacturonase is a kind of pectinase which promotes the hydrolysis of galacturonic acid chain under water environment.

Uses

Pectinase, Aspergillus niger is used in plant protoplast preparation to digest cell wall prior to organelle isolation. Pectinase helps facilitate the maceration of plant materials and extraction processes including organelle preparation. It is used in the enzyme preparation. Used mostly to reduce viscosity, to improve filtration to clarify products, to avoid particle sedimentation and to prevent pectin gel formation in the manufacture of fruit juice and wine.

Application

An enzyme found in plant cells that breaks down the polysaccharide pectin. In life, this enzyme is involved in various metabolic functions of the plant, including the ripening process. In the kitchen, cooks use this enzyme to break down pectin to soften plant foods as a way to modify texture, make juicing easier, or to assist in the clarification of plant juices. Pectinase is also commonly used in wine making to get rid of cloudiness.

Preparation

Pectinase occurs throughout the natural world, but microbes are the primary tool through which it is made for commercial purposes. Producing microbial pectinase occurs mostly by submerging bacteria in a liquid that is continuously agitated, or via solid-state fermentation, which involves growing the microbes on a substrate. The microbes secrete the lipase, which is then purified, homogenized, and crystallized for sale.

References

http://www.xtend-life.com/information/ingredients/pectinase
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pectinase

Uses

Pectinase from Rhizopus sp has been used for enzymatic digestion of leaves.

Uses

Pectinase, Aspergillus niger is used in plant protoplast preparation to digest cell wall prior to organelle isolation. Pectinase helps facilitate the maceration of plant materials and extraction processes including organelle preparation. It is used in the enzyme preparation. Used mostly to reduce viscosity, to improve filtration to clarify products, to avoid particle sedimentation and to prevent pectin gel formation in the manufacture of fruit juice and wine.

General Description

This product has been enhanced for energy efficiency and waste prevention when used in cellulosic ethanol research.

Biochem/physiol Actions

Pectolytic enzyme preparation produced from a selected strain of Aspergillus niger: contains mainly pectintranseliminase, polygalacturonase, and pectinesterase and small amounts of hemicellulases and cellulases. Pectinases hydrolyses pectin, which is a component of the cell wall. They may attack methyl-esterified pectin or de-esterified pectin. It is a source of pectinase activity, also containing cellulase and hemicellulase activities.Pectinase catalyzes the random hydrolysis of a-(1-4)-Dgalactosiduronic linkages in pectin and other galacturonans.