title: Comparative analysis on the distribution of protease activities among fruits and vegetable resources.
abstract: In this study, a comparative analysis on the distribution of protease activities among 90 plant resources, including fruits and vegetables, has been performed. Protease activities of plant extracts were assayed at different pH values (pH 3.0, pH 7.5 and pH 10.5) using casein as a substrate. Ten fruits and thirteen vegetables show protease activities above 10U/g. Pineapple, fig and papaya, which are used for commercial protease production, exhibited high protease activities. Additionally, high protease activities were detected in kiwifruit (28.8U/g), broccoli (16.9U/g), ginger (16.6U/g), leek (32.7U/g) and red pepper (15.8U/g) at different pH values. SDS-PAGE and zymograms confirmed that various types of proteases existed in the five plant extracts and might be explored. Furthermore, five plant extracts were treated by different protease inhibitors. These results show that there are still many plant resources unexplored, which may be promising candidates for plant-derived protease production.
authors.affiliation: Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Food Nutrition and Human Health, College of Food Science and Nutritional Engineering, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100083, China.
authors.forename: Qian
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.affiliation: Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Food Nutrition and Human Health, College of Food Science and Nutritional Engineering, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100083, China; College of Food and Bioengineering, Henan University of Science and Technology, Luoyang 471023, China.
authors.forename: Bin
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: College of Engineering, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100083, China.
authors.forename: Qiao-Juan
authors.initials: QJ
authors.lastname: Yan
authors.affiliation: Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Food Nutrition and Human Health, College of Food Science and Nutritional Engineering, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100083, China. Electronic address: zhqjiang@cau.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Zheng-Qiang
authors.initials: ZQ
authors.lastname: Jiang
mesh_terms: D029042:Actinidia / Q000201:enzymology; D001937:Brassica / Q000201:enzymology; D002212:Capsicum / Q000201:enzymology; D002364:Caseins / Q000378:metabolism; D004591:Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel; D005638:Fruit / Q000201:enzymology*; D020939:Zingiber officinale / Q000201:enzymology; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D019697:Onions / Q000201:enzymology; D010447:Peptide Hydrolases / Q000378:metabolism*; D010936:Plant Extracts / Q000737:chemistry; D011480:Protease Inhibitors / Q000378:metabolism; D014675:Vegetables / Q000201:enzymology*
chemical_list: D002364:Caseins; D010936:Plant Extracts; D011480:Protease Inhibitors; D010447:Peptide Hydrolases
keywords: Comparative analysis; Distribution; Plants; Protease activity