ABSTRACT
Xylanase, a hydrolytic enzyme, is susceptible to inactivation by the oxidative conditions generated by the laccase mediator system (LMS). Given the impetus to develop a mixed enzyme system for application in biomass processing industries, xylanase was encapsulated with either Cu2+- or Ca2+-alginate and then exposed to the LMS with variations such as mediator type, mediator concentration, and treatment pH. Results demonstrate that alginate-encapsulated xylanase retains substantial activity (> 80%) when exposed to the LMS relative to non-encapsulated xylanase. Cu2+-alginate generally provided better protection than Ca2+-alginate for all mediators, and protection was observed even at a low pH, where the LMS is most potent. Despite encapsulation, xylanase was still capable of hydrolyzing its polymeric substrate xylan, given kcat/Km values within an order of magnitude of that for non-encapsulated xylanase. The alginate matrix does not impede the function of the oxidized mediator, since comparable Vmax values were observed for the conversion of veratryl alcohol to veratraldehyde by free and Cu2+-alginate encapsulated laccase. Overall, these results support development of a mixed enzyme system for biomass delignification and, more broadly, show potential for protecting protein function in an oxidative environment.
