Heterologous expression and characterization of processing α-glucosidase I from Aspergillus brasiliensis ATCC 9642.

A gene for processing α-glucosidase I from a filamentous fungus, Aspergillus brasiliensis (formerly called Aspergillus niger) ATCC 9642 was cloned and fused to a glutathione S-transferase tag. The active construct with the highest production level was a truncation mutant deleting the first 16 residues of the hydrophobic N-terminal domain. This fusion enzyme hydrolyzed pyridylaminated (PA-) oligosaccharides Glc(3)Man(9)GlcNAc(2)-PA and Glc(3)Man(4)-PA and the products were identified as Glc(2)Man(9)GlcNAc(2)-PA and Glc(2)Man(4)-PA, respectively. Saturation curves were obtained for both Glc(3)Man(9)GlcNAc(2)-PA and Glc(3)Man(4)-PA, and the K (m) values for both substrates were estimated in the micromolar range. When 1 µM Glc(3)Man(4)-PA was used as a substrate, the inhibitors kojibiose and 1-deoxynojirimycin had similar effects on the enzyme; at 20 µM concentration, both inhibitors reduced activity by 50%.