BACTERIAL ALGINATE LYASE INACTIVE ON ALGINATE BIOSYNTHESIZED BY PSEUDOMONAS-AERUGINOSA

A bacterium (strain Al) isolated from a ditch produces three kinds of intracellular alginate lyases [Al-I (molecular weight: M.W. 60,000), Al-II-1 (M.W. 60,000) and Al-II-2]; the former two lyases have been purified and characterized (Yonemoto et al., J. Ferment. Bioeng., 72, 152-157, 1991). As part of a series of studies, Al-II-2 lyase was purified from cell-free extract of the bacterium. The lyase, with a M.W. of 25,000, depolymerized sodium-, potassium- and propyleneglycol alginates most efficiently at pH 8.0, 70-degrees-C, but it was inactive toward bacterial alginates with O-acetyl groups.