title: Salt effect on the pH profile and kinetic parameters of microbial phytases.
abstract: The pH profiles of two microbial phytases were determined using four different general purpose buffers at different pH values. The roles of calcium chloride, sodium chloride, and sodium fluoride on activity were compared in these buffers. For Aspergillus niger phytase, calcium extended the pH range to 8.0. A high concentration of sodium chloride affected the activity of fungal phytase in the pH 3-4 range and shifted the pH optimum to 2.0 from 5.5 in Escherichia coli phytase. As expected, both of the microbial phytases were inhibited by sodium fluoride at acidic pH values. Because the Km for phytate increased nearly 2-fold for fungal phytase while Vmax increased about 75% in a high concentration of sodium chloride, it is possible that salt enhanced the product to dissociate from the active site due to an altered electrostatic environment. Modeling studies indicate that while the active site octapeptide's orientation is very similar, there are some differences in the arrangements of alpha-helices, beta-sheets, and coils that could account for the observed catalytic and salt effect differences.
authors.affiliation: Southern Regional Research Center, Agricultural Research Service, US Department of Agriculture, New Orleans, Louisiana 70124, USA. abul.ullah@ars.usda.gov
authors.forename: Abul H J
authors.initials: AH
authors.lastname: Ullah
authors.forename: Kandan
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Sethumadhavan
authors.forename: Edward J
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: Mullaney
mesh_terms: D010832:6-Phytase / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*; D001234:Aspergillus niger / Q000201:enzymology*; D001665:Binding Sites; D002122:Calcium Chloride / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000201:enzymology*; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D007700:Kinetics; D008958:Models, Molecular; D012965:Sodium Chloride / Q000494:pharmacology*; D012969:Sodium Fluoride / Q000494:pharmacology*; D013379:Substrate Specificity
chemical_list: D012965:Sodium Chloride; D012969:Sodium Fluoride; D010832:6-Phytase; D002122:Calcium Chloride