Feruloyl esterase from Alternaria tenuissima that hydrolyses lignocellulosic material to release hydroxycinnamic acids

An extracellular feruloyl esterase from the culture filtrates of the isolated fungus Alternaria tenuissima was successfully purified to apparent homogeneity by anion-exchange and size-exclusion chromatography. Peptide fragments of purified enzyme (designated as AltFAE; molecular weight of 30.3 kDa determined by SDS-PAGE) were identified by mass spectrometry using a NanoLC-ESI-MS/MS system. Michaelis-Menten constants (KM) and catalytic efficiencies (kcat/KM) were determined for typical substrates of feruloyl esterase, and the lowest KM of 50.6 μM (i.e., the highest affinity) and the highest kcat/KM (3.1 × 105 s—1 M–1) were observed for methyl p-coumarate and methyl ferulate, respectively. Not least, AltFAE catalyzed conversion of lignocellulosic material (e.g. wood meal) to release hydroxycinnamic products, i.e. ferulic- and p-coumaric acids.