Revision as of 14:19, 16 October 2014

endo-1,4-beta-xylanase xynA from Bacillus Subtilis Subtilis 168

The endo-1,4-beta-xylanase gene xynA cleaves xylan polysaccharide chains to form shorter xylan chains. This gene has been isolated from the bacterium Bacillus subtilis subtilis 168.

Usage and Biology

Xylan is a molecule similar to cellulose, and after cellulose the most abundant biomass material on earth. It is a major structural component of plant cell walls. Furthermore, xylan crosslinks with cellulose and other cell wall components, inhibiting access of cellulases (1). Xylose is the sugar monomer of xylan as glucose is to cellulose. Xylose cannot be used in the human body as a source of energy. Endo-1,4-beta-xylanase (xynA) breaks the xylan chains into shorter chains, and may be stearically hindered by side chains (2).

A beta-xylanase such as Endo-1,4-beta xylanase may be used to degrade xylan to facilitate cellulase activity. Another use may be in conjunction with an exo-xylanase to efficiently break down xylan into xylose monomers (a pentose sugar).

Enzymatic Activity of Gene Product

As stated above, the function of the gene product is xylan degredation. The enzyme's catabolic activity results from endohydrolysis of 1,4-beta-D-xylosidic linkages in xylan molecules (4).

(1) http://newscenter.lbl.gov/feature-stories/2012/11/12/a-better-route-to-xylan/ (2) http://www.nutrex.be/sites/default/files/wysiwyg-upload/nutrase-xyla-nsp-enzyme.pdf (3) http://subtiwiki.uni-goettingen.de/wiki/index.php/XynA (4) http://www.uniprot.org/uniprot/P18429

xynA The endo-1,4-beta-xylanase xynA is a globular protein that has two residues of interest the nucleophile and acid-base cleavage sites at the E residues 78 and 172 highlighted in red.
xynA Enzyme Activity
This graph depicts the inhibition of the gene product of XynA found in Bacillus Subtillis Subtillis 168 (BsX) in comparison to the inhibition of the XynA found in Aspergillus Niger (AsX). Sorensen and Sibbensen were observing the inhibitory effects of the TAXI (Triticum Aestivum Xylanase Inhibitor) , specific to Glycoside hydrolase family 11 (GH 11), and XIP (xylanase inhibitor protein), specific to fungal GH 11 but not bacterial GH 11. which XynA is a member. Inhibition was tested with either pure XIP (BsX-XIP and AnX-XIP) or both XIP and TAXI ( BsX-Inhibitor Prep and AnX-Inhibitor Prep. It is evident from this graph that BsX is not effected by XIP but is strongly inhibited by TAXI, causing a decrease in residual xylanase activity by approximately 80%.	This graph depicts the effect of pH on the interaction between the BsX xylanase and the inhibitor TAXI at a 1:5 concentration. The pH profile of the of the inhibition resembles the ph profile of the enzyme, indicating that TAXI is a competitive inhibitor for the BsX Xylanase. This graph also depicts the optimal pH for the XynA enzyme from Bacillus Subtillis Subtillis 168 to be around 5.5.

copyright permission submitted

Sequence and Features