Enzymes in the Environment: Activity, Ecology and Applications - Chapter 21 (end) pps

... be-of 7-amino-4-meth- cause they haveylcoumarin. high kcat/kmvalues and low back-Prepare proteins withground hydrolysisa fluorogenic label and the thiol leav-attached to individ-ing ... hydro-lyzes neutral amino acid arylamides: i.e., it hydrolyzes amino acids attached to β-naph-thylamine and p-nitroaniline according to the following reaction (using the amino acid l-leucine ... Inc.phosphate(ATP)concentration(inthecaseofphosphomonoesterases).TheextrapolationtozeropopulationorATPconcentrationproducesapositiveintercept,whichisassumedtobetheextracellularcomponentoftheenzymeactivity(72,73).B.EstimationofActiveEnzymeProteinEquivalentStudiesin199 8and1 999byKloseandTabatabai(74–76)haveestimatedtheconcentra-tionsof12enzymeproteinsinsoils.Theaveragesoftheconcentrationsin10Iowasurfacesoilsrangedfrom0.014mgproteinkgϪ1soilforβ-glucosidaseto22.5mgproteinkgϪ1soilforacidphosphatase(Table2).Theseestimatesweredonebyanalysisofreferenceproteinmaterialsbysodiumdodecylsulfate-polyacrylamidegelelectrophoresis(SDS-PAGE)andbycalculationofthespecificactivityofthereferenceproteins.Fromthespecificactivitiesofthereferenceproteinsandactivitiesoftheenzymesinsoilsinthepresenceoftoluene,theenzymeproteinequivalentsinsoilswerecalculated.Thesecalcu-lationswerenotintendedtogiveanaccurateconcentrationofenzymeproteinsinsoilsbutinsteadtoprovidesomequantitationofenzymeproteinequivalent.Actualconcentra-tionsofenzymeproteinsinsoilsareundoubtedlymuchgreaterthanthosecalculatedbe-causemanysoilcomponentscaninhibitactivity,andstructuralstabilizationalsoleadstodecreasesintheactivity.However,thecalculationsillustrateonereasonforthedifficultiesencounteredintheextractionandpurificationofenzymefromsoils(68).FromtheresultsreportedinTable2,itisclearthatthesmallconcentrationsofenzymeproteinsinsoilseitheraredenaturedduringextractionorbondtightlywiththesolublecarbohydrates,mak-ingtheirseparationverydifficult.VI.TYPESOFENZYMESANDSUBSTRATESTodate,soilenzymestudieshavebeenprimarilyrestrictedtohydrolasesbutwithaddi-tionaleffortalsoputintomeasuringspecifictypesofoxidoreductasesandlyases.Thisemphasisonhydrolasesisunderstandablebecauseoftheneedformicroorganismsinsoiltodegradeacomplexvarietyofsubstratesinsoil.Manyofthesesubstratesarepolymericandcanonlybedegradedbyenzymessecretedintosoil.Thefateofthesecretedorextra-cellularenzymesisstillnotwellunderstood,butitisprobablysafetoassumethatmostofthemarerapidlydegradedbyproteasesand/orinactivatedinsoil.However,somemaybecomeimmobilizedandstabilizedinsoilthroughavarietyofmechanisms(7)sothattheiractivitycontinueslongaftertheyarefirstintroducedintosoil.Hydrolasesarealsorelativelysimpleenzymesystems,whichgenerallydonotrequirecofactors;havemultiplesubunits;andaresmallinsize.Thustheyaremuchmoreresistanttodenaturationbytemperature,desiccation,sorption,orotherphysicalfactorsofthesoilenvironment.Thespecificityofanenzymereactionisdifficulttoassessinsoils.Forexample,totalcellulaseactivityinsoilsmaybeduetowidevarietyofextracellularenzymesfromfungiandbacteriaincludingthosestabilizedbyassociationwiththeorganicandmineralcomponents.Anaccuratedescriptionofallenzymesinalllocations,forexample,thatcontributetomeasuredcellulaseactivityisnotpossibleatthistime.Inaddition,cellulasesareendocellularorectocellular(i.e.,cleaveinternalorexposedβ 1-4 linkages)andinteractinasynergisticwaythatwouldmakeitverydifficulttodistinguishbetweentheindividualcomponentsof‘‘total’’cellulaseactivity.InTable3,wehavedescribedsomeofthemajorpolymericsubstratesthatarenatu-rally...

... systems involving phenoloxidase enzymes. The deamination of amino acids, such as serine, phenylalanine, proline, methionine, and cysteine by birnessite, and the role of pyrogallol in influencing their ... effective for both L- and D- glutamic acid. The PLP-Cu2ϩ-smectitehas acted as a ‘‘pseudoenzyme’’ wherein the PLP was active and independent of the protein matrix of the enzyme and the silicate structure ... aspartase-Ca-montmoril-lonite systems (159). Deamination of l- and d-glutamic and aspartic amino acids and oftheir DL racemic mixtures in the presence of Na-montmorillonite showed a stereoselectiv-ity...

... Inc.Currently,itisevidentthatmicroorganismsformcomplexmicrobialfoodwebsinallaquaticecosystems,andthattheiractivitiesandmetabolismsoftenaretightlycoupled and/ ormutuallyaffected(132,143,144).Therefore,itisnotsurprisingthatenzymaticpropertiesandactivitiesofdifferentcomponentscreatingthemicrobialfoodwebsinlakeecosystemshavedemonstratedcloserelationships.Severalreportshavedocumentedthestrongdependencyofbacterialsecondaryproductiononectoenzymeactivitiesofaquaticmicroorganisms(2–4,16,17,19,25,28,29,33,36,59).Thereoftenisasignificantcorrelationbetweenphytoplanktonprimaryproductionandactivitiesofdifferentectoenzymesinfreshwaterecosystems(25,28,29,33,52).Ourstudiesinlakesofdifferingdegreesofeutrophicationhaveshownmicrobialesteraseactivitytobepositivelycorrelatedtophytoplanktonprimaryproduction,bacterialsecondaryproduction,andconcentrationofdissolvedorganiccarbon(DOC)(Fig.13).Wehavefoundasignificantnegativerelationshipbetweenenzymeactivityandtheper-centageofphytoplanktonextracellularrelease(PER)ofphotosyntheticorganiccarboninthestudiedlakes.ThisnegativecorrelationbetweenPERandesteraseactivityindicatedthatenzymesynthesiswaspartiallyinhibitedinbacteriabylow-molecular-weightphoto-syntheticproductsofphytoplanktonthatwerereadilyutilizedbythesemicroheterotrophs:i.e.,catabolicrepressionofesterasesynthesiswasfoundinlakescharacterizedbyhighPERofphytoplankton(29,33).VIII.ECTOENZYMEACTIVITYANDLAKEWATEREUTROPHICATIONTheimportanceoforganicmatterasavariableforevaluatingthetrophicstatusoflakeshasbeenrecognizedsincethebeginningofthe20thcentury(145,146).Increasingconcen-trationsoforganicconstituentsinwaterarethedistinctindicatorsofacceleratedeutrophi-cationprocessesinmanylakes(147–149).OurstudiesclearlydemonstratedthatenzymeactivitiesweresignificantlypositivelyproportionaltoDOCcontentoflakes(Fig.13C).Asdescribedearlierinthischapter,severalmicrobialectoenzymesareresponsibleforrapidtransformationanddegradationofbothdissolvedorganicmatterandPOMinfresh-waterecosystems.Therefore,wehypothesizethatan‘‘enzymaticapproach’’canbeveryusefulinthestudiesoflakeeutrophication.Severalreportspointedoutthatmicrobialenzymaticactivitieswerecloselyrelatedtotheindicesofwatereutrophicationand/orthetrophicstatusofaquaticecosystems(25,27,29,31,33,38,52,58,62,78).Ourstudiesalongthetrophicgradientoflakes(fromoligo/mesotrophictohypereutrophiclakes[Fig.14A]supportourhypothesis(andtheassumptionsofothers)thatselectedenzymaticmicrobialactivitiesareverypracticalforarapidrecognitionofthecurrenttrophicstatusoflakes.Activitiesofalkalinephosphatase,esterase,andaminopeptidaseincreasedexponentiallyalongatrophicgradientandcorre-latedsignificantlywiththetrophicstateindexofthestudiedlakes(Fig.14B,C,D).Wealsofoundastrongrelationshipbetweenactivitiesofectoenzymesandphytoplanktonprimaryproductionintheselakes.RapidincreasesinectoenzymeactivitieswereobservedespeciallyinarangeofgraduallyeutrophiclakeswhenthevalueofCarlson’strophicstateindex(TSI)wasabove55(150)(Fig.14).Moreover, ... for the enzymes involved in the transformation and degrada-tion of polymeric substrates outside the cell membrane: ectoenzymes (19), extracellular enzymes (20), and exoenzymes (21) . In this chapter, ... resulting low-molecular-weight products are then transported across the cell mem-brane and utilized inside the cytoplasm. The hydrolysis of polymers is an acknowledged rate-limiting step in the utilizationof...

... forchitin-hydrolyzing activity by using MUF-β-d-N, N′-diacetylchitobioside, and chitobiaseactivity was then assayed in protein extracts prepared from the positive clones. The chi-tinases of marine bacteria ... Inc.Investigationsofextracellularenzymesfrommarineanimalsandenzymesisolatedfromprokaryotesareconsideredonlyifaclearconnectiontomarineecologyisestablished.Thetermextracellularenzymesisusedthroughoutthischapter,whereasChro´st(5)distin-guishesbetweenectoenzymesandextracellularenzymes.EctoenzymesaredefinedbyChro´st(5)andinChapter2asenzymeslocatedintheperiplasmicspaceorattachedtotheoutermembraneofthebacterialcell.Extracellularenzymesareenzymesfreelydis-solvedinthewaterorattachedtoparticlesotherthantheenzyme-synthesizingcell .In thischapter,however,thetermextracellularenzymesreferstobothectoenzymesandextracellularenzymes,unlessotherwisestated.EarlystudiesonthefateoforganicaggregatesanddissolvedpolymersintheseawerepresentedbyRiley(6),Walsh(7),andKhailovandFinenko(8).Overbeck(9)re-viewedtheearlystudiesonextracellularenzymeactivityintheaquaticenvironment.II.ECOLOGICALPRINCIPLESOFENZYMATICPATTERNSINTHESEAA.TheConceptoftheMicrobialLoopandtheRoleofExtracellular Enzymes Themicrobialloop(10)encompassesthecombinedactivitiesofautotrophicandheterotro-phic—eukaryoticaswellasprokaryotic—organismssmallerthan20µm.Theseorgan-isms,representedbybacteria,nanoflagellates,ciliates,andphototrophicprochlorophytes,aswellascyanobacteria,formafoodweboftheirown,looselyconnectedtothefoodwebofthelargergrazers.Ingeneral,thenutritionalbasisofthemicrobialfoodwebisprovidedbythepoolofdissolvedorganicmatter(DOM)andparticulateorganicmatter(POM).TheDOMpoolisapriorireservedforbacterialutilization,whereascompetitionwithmetazoansoccursforPOM.ThiscompetitionisdeterminedbythebacterialpotentialforenzymaticdissolutionofPOMontheonehandandthefeedingactivityofthemetazo-ansontheotherhand.Thebulkofboththedissolvedandparticulateresources,however,requiresenzymatichydrolysispriortouptakebybacteria(Fig.1).Thustheenzymaticactivitiesofbacteriainitiateorganiccarbon(C)remineralizationanddefinethetypeandquantityofsubstrateavailabletothetotalmicrobialfoodweband,tocertainextent,alsotothetoppredatorsinthesystem.B.FreeandAttachedEnzymeActivityGenerally,extracellularenzymesmaybeboundtothecell(definedasectoenzymesbyChro´st[5])orinthefreeandadsorbedstate(11,12).Mostofthetotalenzymeactivityinseawaterhasbeenfoundtobeassociatedwiththeparticlesizeclassdominatedbybacteria(Ͼ0.2µm–3µm)(13,14)(Table1).Dissolvedenzymes(15)andlargeparticlesϾ8 ... Inc.Investigationsofextracellularenzymesfrommarineanimalsandenzymesisolatedfromprokaryotesareconsideredonlyifaclearconnectiontomarineecologyisestablished.Thetermextracellularenzymesisusedthroughoutthischapter,whereasChro´st(5)distin-guishesbetweenectoenzymesandextracellularenzymes.EctoenzymesaredefinedbyChro´st(5)andinChapter2asenzymeslocatedintheperiplasmicspaceorattachedtotheoutermembraneofthebacterialcell.Extracellularenzymesareenzymesfreelydis-solvedinthewaterorattachedtoparticlesotherthantheenzyme-synthesizingcell .In thischapter,however,thetermextracellularenzymesreferstobothectoenzymesandextracellularenzymes,unlessotherwisestated.EarlystudiesonthefateoforganicaggregatesanddissolvedpolymersintheseawerepresentedbyRiley(6),Walsh(7),andKhailovandFinenko(8).Overbeck(9)re-viewedtheearlystudiesonextracellularenzymeactivityintheaquaticenvironment.II.ECOLOGICALPRINCIPLESOFENZYMATICPATTERNSINTHESEAA.TheConceptoftheMicrobialLoopandtheRoleofExtracellular Enzymes Themicrobialloop(10)encompassesthecombinedactivitiesofautotrophicandheterotro-phic—eukaryoticaswellasprokaryotic—organismssmallerthan20µm.Theseorgan-isms,representedbybacteria,nanoflagellates,ciliates,andphototrophicprochlorophytes,aswellascyanobacteria,formafoodweboftheirown,looselyconnectedtothefoodwebofthelargergrazers.Ingeneral,thenutritionalbasisofthemicrobialfoodwebisprovidedbythepoolofdissolvedorganicmatter(DOM)andparticulateorganicmatter(POM).TheDOMpoolisapriorireservedforbacterialutilization,whereascompetitionwithmetazoansoccursforPOM.ThiscompetitionisdeterminedbythebacterialpotentialforenzymaticdissolutionofPOMontheonehandandthefeedingactivityofthemetazo-ansontheotherhand.Thebulkofboththedissolvedandparticulateresources,however,requiresenzymatichydrolysispriortouptakebybacteria(Fig.1).Thustheenzymaticactivitiesofbacteriainitiateorganiccarbon(C)remineralizationanddefinethetypeandquantityofsubstrateavailabletothetotalmicrobialfoodweband,tocertainextent,alsotothetoppredatorsinthesystem.B.FreeandAttachedEnzymeActivityGenerally,extracellularenzymesmaybeboundtothecell(definedasectoenzymesbyChro´st[5])orinthefreeandadsorbedstate(11,12).Mostofthetotalenzymeactivityinseawaterhasbeenfoundtobeassociatedwiththeparticlesizeclassdominatedbybacteria(Ͼ0.2µm–3µm)(13,14)(Table1).Dissolvedenzymes(15)andlargeparticlesϾ8...

... Inc.Althoughthisstudyinvolvedtheuseofageneticallymodifiedmicrobe,themodi - cationswerenotintendedtohaveafunctionalimpact;theywereinsertedasgeneticmark-ers.Asecondstudycomparingtheeffectofthesamegeneticallymarkedstraintothatofafunctionallymodifiedstrainshowedeffectsthataremoreinteresting(36).Theaimofthisworkwastodeterminetheimpactintherhizosphereofwildtypealongwithfunction-allyandnonfunctionallymodifiedPseudomonasfluorescensstrains.Thewild-typeF113straincarriedageneencodingtheproductionoftheantibiotic2,4-diacetylphloroglucinol(DAPG),usefulinplantdiseasecontrol,andwasmarkedwithalacZYgenecassette .The firstmodifiedstrainwasafunctionalmodificationofstrainF113withrepressedproductionofDAPG,creatingtheDAPGnegativestrainF113G22.Thesecondpairedcomparisonwasanonfunctionalmodificationofwild-type(unmarked)strainSBW25,constructedtocarrymarkergenesonly,creatingstrainSBW25EeZY-6KX.Significantperturbationswererecordedintheindigenousbacterialpopulationstruc-ture;theF113(DAPGϩ)straincausedashifttowardslower-growingcolonies(Kstrate-gists)comparedwiththenon-antibiotic-producingderivative(F113G22)andSBW25strains.TheDAPGϩstrainalsosignificantlyreduced,incomparisonwiththoseoftheotherinocula,thetotalPseudomonassp.populations,butdidnotaffectthetotalmicrobialpopulations.ThesurvivalofF113andF113G22wasanorderofmagnitudelowerthanthatoftheSBW25strains.TheDAPGϩstraincausedasignificantdecreaseintheshoot-to-rootratioincomparisontothatofthecontrolandotherinoculants,indicatingplantstress.F113increasedsoilalkalinephosphatase,phosphodiesterase,andarylsulfataseac-tivities(Table2)comparedtothoseofthecontrols.Theotherinoculareducedthesameenzyme ... Inc.Theresultsshowedlargedifferencesbetweenthe2daysofsamplinginsoilenzymeactivities(e.g.,alkalinephosphatase,Fig.2)andavailablesoilnutrients(e.g.,nitrate,Fig.3).Differenceswerefoundalsobetweenthevariousoilseedrapevarietieswithmostsoilenzymesmeasuredandwiththeavailablesoilnutrients.However,therewaslittlediffer-encebetweentheenzymeactivitiesintherhizosphereoftheGMandnon-GMplants.Themajorfactorinfluencingtheenzymeactivitiesandsoilnutrientsbetweenthetwosamplingdayswasthesoilmoisturecontent,whichwasincreasedbyovernightrain.Therefore,inthisfieldtrial,thedifferencesbetweensoilenzymeactivitieswerenotattrib-utabletoplantgeneticmodification,buttoenvironmentalvariationandtodifferencesinplantvariety.V.CONCLUSIONSClearlyenzymeactivitiesareusefulindeterminingperturbationsinthesoilenvironmentbroughtaboutbychangesinagriculturalpractices,theuseofagrochemicals,pollutionevents,ortheexploitationofgeneticallymodifiedorganisms.Biocontrolofpestsanddiseasesisameansbywhichenzymefunctionhasbeenexploited(43),butthereisevengreateropportunitytomonitorandmanipulateenzymesasgenerationsofplantnutrients,plant-growth-promotingagents,soilstructurestimulants,andbioremediationcatalysts.Althoughbioremediationhashadlessattentionthanbiocontrol,thepotentialforexploitationisenormous(44).Mostresearchhasbeenfocusedonmicrobialinoculants(bioaugmentation),butitisequallyrelevanttoconsiderhowtooptimizethefunctionoftheindigenousorganisms(biostimulation).Phytoremediation,byplantrootsthemselvesorassociatedmicrobiota(rhizoremediation),isbecominganincreasinglyinterestingcleanupsolutionforsoils.Mostattentionhasbeenpaidtoheavymetaldecontamination ,and whereasthereisinevitablysomeenzymeinvolvement,littlehasbeencharacterized.How-ever,rhizospheremicroorganismsproduceenzymesthathavethecapacitytocatabolizeawiderangeoforganicpollutants.MicrobialdehalogenationisdescribedindetailinChapters1 8and1 9,butofspecialinterestarehydrogencyanideandothernitriles.Notonly ... would in- crease the microbial P demand.Inverse trends were found with the C and N cycle enzymes in comparison to the general trend found in the P and S cycle enzymes. The F113 (DAPGϩ) strain was...

... short-chain poly-P was higher in the internal hyphae (67). Long-chain poly-P seems to be more efficient in transporting Pi from the extraradical to the intraradical part of the fungi. Activity of enzymes ... Inc.directlycontributetoreductionofpathogenviabilityandgrowth.Inaddition,theyhavebeenproposedasmediatorsinpathwaysleadingtodefense-relatedgeneexpression(136).ThereleaseofAOSinsomeplant–pathogeninteractionscanresultindamagetothehosttissues.Therefore,mechanismsthatlimitthedurationoftheoxidativeburstanditstoxiceffectsarenecessarytominimizedamagetotheplantitself.Oneofthesemecha-nismsistheactionofendogenousantioxidantenzymes,suchassuperoxidedismutases,catalases,peroxidases,andglutathioneperoxidases,whicharecapableofneutralizingtheAOS.Duringtheestablishmentofacompatibleplant–fungusAMsymbiosis,thehostplantshowedlittlereactionatthecytologicalleveltoappressoriumformationorinfectionhyphae.Occasionallysomethickeningwasobservedinepidermalcellwallsatthepointofcontactwithappressoria(105),andonlyaresponsesimilartoHRhasbeendetectedinRiT-DNA–transformedrootsofalfalfacolonizedbyGigasporamargarita(137).Nev-ertheless,recentstudies,usingthediaminobenzidine(DAB)stainingtechnique,revealedthatabrownishstain,indicativeofH2O2accumulation,waspresentwithincorticalrootcellsinthespaceoccupiedbyclumpedarbusculesandaroundhyphaltipsattemptingtopenetraterootsofMedicagotruncatulacolonizedbyG.intraradices(138).TheseresultssuggestthatalocallyrestrictedoxidativeburstcouldbeinvolvedintheresponseoftheplanttoAMformationanddevelopment.Relativelyfewdataexistconcerningthepossibleparticipationofantioxidanten-zymesintheplantresponsetoAMformation.Apeakofcellwall–boundperoxidasewasobservedduringtheinitialstagesoffungalpenetrationinleek(Alliumporrum)cells.Onceinfectionwasestablished,theactivitydecreasedtothelevelsshowninnonmycorrhizalplants(139).Inpotatoroots,theactivityofextracellularperoxidaserecoveredinrootleachateswasnotstimulatedbyAMinfection;peroxidaseactivitypergramoffreshweightwassignificantlyenhancedinAMroots(140).WhenpotatoplantsweregrownwithhigherPsupply,extracellularperoxidaseactivityincreasedlinearlywithincreasingPsupply,suggestingaroleofperoxidaseinlimitingAMinfectioninwell-P-nourishedplants(140).Theanalysisofcatalaseandascorbateperoxidaseactivitiesduringtheearlystageoftobacco–Glomusmosseaeinteractionrevealedtransientenhancementsofbothenzymaticactivitiesintheinoculatedplants(141).Theseincreasescoincidedwiththestageofappre-ssoriaformationonrootsurfacesandtheappearanceofapeakofaccumulationoffreesalicylicacidininoculatedroots(141).Thesedataindicatetheactivationofcatalaseandperoxidaseactivitiesinrootcellswherethefungusformingappressoriamightbepartoftheplantresponsetotheinvadingfungus.Theroleoftheseenzymesinthisresponsecouldberelatedtoactivationofadefensivemechanismortoaprocessofcellwallrepairatthesiteofinfection(Fig.3).Alternatively,theearlyactivationofcatalaseandperoxidasemay ... drought on non-mycorrhizal and mycorrhizal maize: Changes in the pools of non-structural carbohydrates, in the activities of invertase and trehalase, and in the pools of amino acids and imino acids.New...

... soil enzymes, laccase and tyrosinase. The potential role of these enzymes in the humification of anilinic and phenolic compounds and reduction of their bioavilability with the passage of time (aging) ... affecting the efficiency of interaction of the substrate and enzyme molecules. In other words, a portion of the enzyme molecules existing in the field soil may not be actively engaged in catalyzing their ... transforma-tions include the effect of bonding of β-d-glucosidase to a phenolic copolymer of l-tyro-sine, pyrogallol, or resorcinol (108) and of linking of urease to tannic acid (49,52). Sarkarand...

... each site and placed in litter bags. In using the ap-proach of Sinsabaugh et al. (73) and Jackson et al. (29), confined and in situ POM sampleswere assayed monthly for β-glucosidase, β-N-acetylglucosaminidase, ... Inc.wererepressedbyaddedN;formapleandoak,theseactivitiesincreased.Theresultssuggestedthatwhiterotfungi,whichproduceligninasesinresponsetolowNavailability,weredisplacedbysupplementalN,slowingthedecompositionofrecalcitrantlitter.HenriksenandBreland(27)alsofocusedontheroleofNinthedecompositionprocess.Usingamicrocosmsystemofwheatstrawandsoil,theyfoundthatcarbonminer-alization,fungalbiomass,andactivitiesofcellulolyticandhemicellulolyticenzymesde-creasedwithNavailability.Intheareaofcomparativeecosystemstudies,Sinsabaughetal.(62,63)followedmassloss,NandPimmobilization,andactivityof11typesofextracellularenzymesforbirchsticks(Betulapapyfera)decomposingateightupland,riparian,andloticsitesoverafirst-orderwatershed.Masslossratesamongsitesvariedbyafactorof5andwerecorrelatedwithlignocellulaseactivities.Incontrast,relationshipsbetweenmasslossandactivitiesofacidphosphataseand -1 ,4-N-acetylglucosaminidasevariedwidelyamongsites.TheserelationshipsalongwithanalysesoftheNandPcontentofthestickssuggestedthatdifferencesinmasslossratesamongsitesweretiedtodifferencesinnutrientavail-ability.Inanotherexperiment,litterbagscontainingsenescentleavesofAgeratumconi-zoidesandMallotusphilippinensiswereplacedonthefloorofayoungtropicalforestsiteinnortheastIndia(38).OtherlitterbagscontainingleavesofHolarrhenaantidysentericaandVitexglabratawereplacedatamaturetropicalforestsite.Athigher-elevationsubtrop-icalsites,litterbagscontainingPinuskesiyaandMyricaesculentaleaveswereplacedinayoungforestandbagscontainingPinuskesiyaandAlnusnepalensisleaveswereplacedinamatureforest.Sampleswereanalyzedformassloss,bacterialandfungalnumbers,cellulosecontent,Ncontent,solublesugarcontent,andactivitiesofcellulase,amylase,andinvertase.Cellulaseandamylaseactivitieswerecorrelatedwithmicrobialnumbers.Invertaseactivitycorrelatedwithsolublesugarcontent.Enzymeactivitiesandmasslossrateswerehigheratthelowerelevationsitesbutwerenotrelatedtostandage.Inasimilarstudy,thedecompositionofPinuskesiyaandAlnusnepalensisatadisturbedroadsideforestsitewascomparedwiththatatanundisturbedsite(30).Againcellulaseandamylaseactivitieswerecorrelatedwithmicrobialnumbers,whereasinvertaseactivitywaslinkedtosolublesugars.DillyandMunch(18)studiedenzymeactivitiesandmicrobialrespirationforAlnusglutinosa(blackalder)leavesdecomposingatwetanddrysiteswithinafenforest.Masslossratesweremorethantwiceasfastatthewetsite.Microbialbiomassandrespirationdecreasedovertime(16to2.3µmolgϪ1hϪ1),buttheefficiencyofCutilizationincreased.Thesetrendswereparalleledbydecreasingβ-glucosidaseactivityandincreasingproteaseactivity.III.COMPARATIVEANALYSESInthecontextofthesuccessionalloopmodel(Fig.1),therearethreedimensionsforcomparing ... everycombination of monomer, linkage, and secondary structure (69). For lignin and other aro-matic molecules, the process is principally oxidative; the enzymes have lower specificity,but the full...

... the years; these include vanilin, indulin, ferrulic acid, and, most importantly,14C-labeled synthetic lignins. Various fungal enzymes are involved in lignin degradation, including lignin peroxidase, ... strains and the extrac-tion of enzymes, provide complementary information on enzyme production by emphasi-zing the potential of the living hyphae and the sum of past and present activities re-spectively. ... enzymes in the upper part of the profile couldbe due to the presence of fungi (chitin in the cell walls) and arthropods (chitin in the exoskeleton) serving as substrates.Enzyme determination using...

... Inc.possibletofindseveralexplanationstointerpretaproteinadsorptionisotherm,withnoexperimentalevidenceavailabletochooseamongthem.TheadvantageoftheNMRmethodisthatitsimultaneouslygivesthequantityofadsorbedprotein,thesurfacecover-ageofthesolidbytheprotein,andthemonolayerormultilayermodeofadsorption(16).Onlyknowledgeofthesethreefactorsallowsapossibleunfoldingoftheproteinsontheclaysurfacestobedetectedandquantified.1.NuclearMagneticResonanceDetectionoftheExchangeofaParamagneticCationonProteinAdsorptiononClaysTheprincipleofthemethod(16)isbasedonthefactthattheadsorptionofproteinsonclayscausesthereleaseofcharge-compensatingcations(7,17).ItalsousesthesensitivityoftherelaxationtimesT1andT2ofnuclearspinstoparamagneticcationsinNMRspectros-copy(18,19).Asmallquantity(between 3and2 0µMdependingonthepH)ofaparamagneticcation,Mn2ϩ,isaddedtoasodium-saturatedmontmorillonitesuspension(1gLϪ1)witha10-mMconcentrationoforthophosphate.Thesuspensionisstudiedby31PNMRspec-troscopy.Aninterestingphenomenonisobserved:(1)theMn2ϩcationsthatareadsorbedontheclaysurfacedonotinteractatallwiththeorthophosphate,asshownbythecompari-sonbetweentheclaysuspensionandsupernatantafterremovaloftheclaybycentrifuga-tion ;and( 2)theMn2ϩcationsinsolutioninteractwiththeorthophosphate,leadingtoalinearincreaseofthelinewidthathalfheight,∆ν1/2,oftheorthophosphatepeakontheNMRspectrum.Thislasteffectistheresultoftheparamagneticcontributiontothede-creaseofthespin–spinrelaxationtime,T2,oftheorthophosphatesignal.Whenagivenquantityofproteinisintroducedintothissuspension,itdisturbstheequilibriumbetweentheparamagneticMn2ϩadsorbedontheclaysurfaceandthatinsolution.Theanalysisoftheresultinglinewidthoftheorthophosphosphatesignalgivesthequantityofcationsexchangedonadsorption.Witha300-MHzNMRspectrometer,themeasurementtakesafewminutes;witha500-MHzspectrometer,1minissufficient(evenlessifhigherconcentrationsofortho-phosphateareused).Asnocentrifugationisrequiredwiththismethod,thisshorttimeofsignalacquisitioniscompatiblewithkineticstudies.Theresultsareexpressedas∆νP,whichisthedifferencebetween∆ν1/2inthesystemwithparamagneticcationsand∆ν1/2inacontrolofthesamecomposition,(butwithoutparamagneticcations)dividedbytheconcentrationofparamagneticcations.ThesurfacecoverageoftheclaybytheproteincanbededucedfromthefractionofMn2ϩreleased.Theknowledgeofboththequantityofproteinadsorbedandthesurfacecoverageofthesolidallowsthecalculationoftheinterfacialareaofcontactbetweenasingleproteinmoleculeandtheclaysurfaceatdiffer-entpHandionicstrengths.2.ConformationalChangesonAdsorptionofaSoftProtein,BovineSerumAlbumina.DescriptionoftheProgressiveSurfaceCoverageoftheClayFigure1shows the ... (2) a possi-ble unfolding of the protein on the surface changing the interfacial area between individualprotein and surface and the quantity of protein adsorbed at saturation; (3) the surfacecoverage ... contrast to the three preceding models, which assume that the enzymes retain the sameconformation in the adsorbed state and in solution, another model is based on a pH-depen-dent unfolding of the enzyme...