An agar-degrading bacterium, strain BN3, was isolated from a coastal soil sample collected in Taiwan Strait, China and identified to be a novel species of the genus Microbulbifer. The gene (N3-1) encoding for a novel β-agarase from the isolate was cloned and sequenced. It encoded a mature protein with 274 amino acids and a calculated molecular mass of 34.3 kDa. The deduced amino acid sequence manifested sequence similarity (61-84% identity) to characterized β-agarases in the glycoside hydrolase family 16. The recombinant agarase was hyper-produced extracellularly using Pichia pastoris as the host. After induction in a shake flask for 96 h, the yield of recombinant N3-1 protein reached 0.406 mg/mL, and the enzyme activity attained 502.1 U/mL. The enzyme purified by ion exchange chromatography displayed a specific activity of 6447 U/mg at pH 6.0 and 50 °C. The optimal pH and temperature for agarase activity were approximately 6 and 50 °C, respectively. The pattern of agarose hydrolysis showed that the enzyme was an endo-type β-agarase, capable of hydrolyzing agarose and Gracilaria lemaneiformis, with neoagarobiose and neoagarotetraose as the final main products.
Keywords: Beta-agarase; Expression; Microbulbifer sp.; Pichia pastoris.
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