It has recently been shown by Hollman et al. (Am. J. Clin. Nutr., 62, 1276-1282) that flavonoid glycosides are preferentially absorbed from dietary onions compared to the flavonoid aglycone. In the light of this, we have compared the bioactivities of the two most abundant flavonoid glycosides that we have purified from onions (quercetin-3,4'-diglucoside and quercetin-4'-glucoside) to the quercetin aglycone, and also to the more commonly studied commercially-available flavonoid glycosides, rutin (quercetin-3-rutinoside) and isoquercitrin (quercetin-3-glucoside). Quercetin aglycone was the most effective inducer of the anticarcinogenic phase II marker enzyme, quinone reductase (QR), in mouse Hepalclc7 cells. Of the glycosides, only quercetin-4'-glucoside was able to induce QR activity in this assay. Inhibition of NADPH/iron- and ascorbate/iron-induced lipid peroxidation of human liver microsomes, and the Trolox C-equivalent antioxidant capacity (TEAC), were also measured. The 4'-glycosylation dramatically decreased activity in the 'antioxidant' assays, whereas 3-substitutions produced much smaller changes. These results show that the preferentially-absorbed quercetin glycosides in onions have markedly different biological properties compared with the aglycone.

Animals↗

PubMed1996

Human cytochrome P450's are pro-oxidants in iron/ascorbate-initiated microsomal lipid peroxidation.

We have examined the effect of human cytochrome P450's (1A1,1A2,3A4,2A6,2B6,2D6,2E1) on ascorbate/iron-induced lipid peroxidation. Using microsomes prepared from human lymphoblastic cells enriched in recombinant cytochrome P450 isoenzymes, we have shown that the degree of peroxidation is a function of the amount of P450 present rather than the presence of any specific isoenzyme. Incorporated P450 increased the amount of peroxidation products by up to 2.1-fold compared to the control microsomes with no P450. It is therefore concluded that cytochrome P450's play a significant role in ascorbate/iron peroxidation.

Ascorbic Acid↗

PubMed1996

Are whole extracts and purified glucosinolates from cruciferous vegetables antioxidants?

Fruits and vegetables contain several classes of compounds that can potentially contribute to antioxidant activity, including vitamins, simple and complex phenolics, sulphur-containing compounds and glucosinolates. The glucosinolates are found in high concentration in many cruciferous vegetables, and it is well established that their breakdown products induce endogenous antioxidant defences such as quinone reductase and glutathione S-transferase in cells and in vivo. Despite the anticarcinogenic effect of these compounds in animal models, the direct antioxidant properties of this class of compounds have not been systematically studied. We therefore examined the free radical-scavenging properties of representative extracts and of purified glucosinolates from cruciferous vegetables, by measuring their effect on ascorbate- or NADPH/iron-induced peroxidation of human liver microsomes, ascorbate/iron-induced peroxidation on phospholipid liposomes, iron chelation and hydroxyl radical scavenging using the deoxyribose assay, total antioxidant potential using ABTS (2,2'-azinobis(3-ethyl-benzothiazoline-6-sulphonate)) and the bleomycin assay. Most of the extracts from cruciferous vegetables exhibited some antioxidant properties, although extracts from cooked Brussels sprouts increased the rate of microsomal lipid peroxidation. The effects in these assays were dependent upon processing and species of crucifer, and the glucosinolate content appeared to play a minor role in these effects, since purified glucosinolates exhibited only weak antioxidant properties. The total antioxidant activities of extracts from cooked and autolysed Brussels sprouts were identical within experimental error. This is probably due to the content of phenolics which is unaltered by autolysis, despite the differences between these samples in other assays especially NADPH-iron-induced lipid peroxidation of human liver microsomes. The results demonstrate that glucosinolates are unlikely to account for the direct antioxidant effects of extracts from cruciferous vegetables.

Antioxidants↗

PubMed1996

Purification and characterization of a novel esterase induced by growth of Aspergillus niger on sugar-beet pulp.

An inducible esterase has been isolated from a liquid culture of Aspergillus niger grown on sugar-beet pulp. The enzyme was active on methyl esters of cinnamic acids, caffeic > p-coumaric > ferulic, and is therefore termed a cinnamoyl esterase. The enzyme was not active on methyl sinapinate, a good substrate for ferulic acid esterase III, which was purified previously from A. niger [Faulds and Williamson (1994) Microbiology 140, 779-787]. With methyl caffeate as substrate the enzyme had temperature and pH optima of 50 degrees C and 6.0 respectively, and a specific activity of 96.9 units per mg of protein. The purified protein (native molecular mass 145 000 Da) gave a single heavily stained band on SDS/PAGE, suggesting the protein was a dimer, and seemed to be heavily glycosylated. Isoelectric focusing gave a single band corresponding to a pl of 4.80. The pure enzyme was free of other carbohydrase activities. The activity of the pure enzyme was inhibited by more than 99% after treatment with the serine-specific protease inhibitor aminoethylbenzenesulphonylfluoride (1 mM) for 12 h. The enzyme was capable of releasing ferulic acid from sugar beet pulp.

Ammonium Sulfate↗

PubMed1996

Release of ferulic acid from sugar-beet pulp by using arabinanase, arabinofuranosidase and an esterase from Aspergillus niger.

Aspergillus niger cinnamoyl esterase (CinnAE) is shown to be active towards a wide range of feruloylated oligosaccharides derived from sugar-beet pulp (SBP). The esterase hydrolysed ferulic acid ester-linked to either C-2 of arabinose or C-6 of galactose residues, and demonstrated the highest activity towards the feruloylated arabinose trisaccharide. However, CinnAE was able to release only 0.88% of total alkali-extractable ferulic acid from SBP in 24 h when acting alone. To determine whether cell-wall-degrading enzymes could increase the release of ferulic acid by CinnAE, SBP was incubated with various carbohydrases [cellulase, polygalacturonase, endo-arabinanase, alpha-L-arabinofuranosidase, endo-(1,4-beta-D-galactanase, beta-D-galactosidase]. These were added alone and in pairs, both in the presence and absence of CinnAE. We showed that all the carbohydrases tested were free of esterase activity. When individual carbohydrases were incubated with SBP, whether in the presence or absence of CinnAE, less than 1% of the feruloyl groups were released. When incubated with a mixture of endo-arabinanase and alpha-L-arabinofuranosidase, the esterase was able to release 14 times more of the alkali-extractable ferulic acid present in the whole pulp as free acid than CinnAE alone. Ferulic acid is linked either to L-arabinose or D-galactose in SBP, but no corresponding increase in ferulic acid release was detected when SBP was incubated with CinnAE plus endo-(1,4)-beta-D-galactanase and beta-D-galactosidase (both from A. niger). Hence feruloylated arabinans in SBP are readily available for hydrolysis by arabinan-degrading enzymes, whereas feruloylated galactans are not available for hydrolysis by galactan-degrading enzymes.

Aspergillus niger↗

PubMed1996

Metabolism of hydroperoxy-phospholipids in human hepatoma HepG2 cells.

Two enzymatic mechanisms have been proposed for the metabolism of hydroperoxy-phospholipids: i) the combined action of phospholipase A2 and glutathione peroxidase, and/or ii) direct enzymatic reduction. The latter reaction may be catalyzed by selenium-dependent phospholipid hydroperoxide glutathione peroxidase and/or by glutathione S-transferase alpha. To study the pathway of this reaction, we used human hepatoma HepG2 cells into which was incorporated labeled, hydroperoxy-phospholipids. The major product of incorporated l-palmitoyl-2-(13-hydroperoxy-cis-9, trans-11-octadecadienoyl)-L-3-phosphatidylcholine was the corresponding hydroxy-phospholipid with no hydroxy- or hydroperoxy-fatty acids. The contributions to reduction of hydroperoxy-phospholipids in HepG2 cells from glutathione S-transferase Al and phospholipid hydroperoxide glutathione peroxidase were calculated to be 0.5% and 99.5%, respectively. Increasing selenium in the cell culture medium led to increases in selenium-dependent phospholipid hydroperoxide glutathione peroxidase activity but not in glutathione S-transferase alpha. This increase in the selenium-dependent enzyme was paralleled by a concomitant increase in the extent of reduction of the incorporated hydroperoxy-phospholipid. We conclude that the main metabolic fate of hydroperoxy-phospholipids in HepG2 cells is by direct reduction to hydroxy-phospholipids by phospholipid hydroperoxide glutathione peroxidase but also by glutathione S-transferase alpha, and that phospholipase A2/selenium-dependent glutathione peroxidase does not play a significant role in the reduction.

Carcinoma, Hepatocellular↗

PubMed1995

Chemoenzymatic synthesis of 6 omega-S-alpha-D-glucopyranosyl-6 omega-thiomaltooligosaccharides: their binding to Aspergillus niger glucoamylase G1 and its starch-binding domain.

A coupling reaction of cyclodextrin glucosyltransferase (CGTase) with glucose and 6-deoxy-6-iodo-cyclomaltoheptaose (1), in the presence of glucoamylase, followed by acetylation, led to a convenient synthesis of acetylated 6III-deoxy-6III-iodo-maltotriose (2) and 6IV-deoxy-6IV-iodomaltotraose (3). Nucleophilic displacement of the iodine atom of these protected maltotriose and maltotetraose analogs by the activated form of 2,3,4,6-tetra-O-acetyl-1-S- acetyl-1-thio-alpha-D-glucose (4) afforded peracetylated 6III-S-alpha-D-glucopyranosyl-6III-thiomaltotriose (5) and 6IV-S-alpha-D-glucopyranosyl-6IV-thiomaltotetraose (6) in high yield. The interaction of OH-free tetra- and penta-saccharides (7 and 8) with both glucoamylase G1 from Aspergillus niger as well as its isolated starch-binding domain fragment were studied by UV difference spectroscopy. It was found that the starch-binding domain has higher affinity for 7 and 8 than for maltotetraose and maltopentaose.

Aspergillus niger↗

PubMed1995

Expression in Aspergillus niger of the starch-binding domain of glucoamylase. Comparison with the proteolytically produced starch-binding domain.

Glucoamylase 1 from Aspergillus niger is an economically important enzyme in many industrial processes. It hydrolyses granular starch and comprises two distinct domains, a catalytic and a starch-binding domain (SBD). We have transformed A. niger with an expression vector for the secretion of SBD for physico-chemical studies. This was achieved by introducing into the glucoamylase gene a short sequence encoding an endoproteolytic cleavage recognition site such that free SBD was secreted at yields up to 200 mg/l. Free SBD was also obtained by proteolytic digestion of full-length glucoamylase 1. Electrospray mass spectroscopy was used to determine the carbohydrate content of both SBDs. It revealed that the engineered one is more glycosylated: an average of three mannose residues compared to one for the proteolytically derived SBD. Sequencing results also suggest partial glycosylation for the three Thr residues involved (510, 511, 513). It is probable that the engineered SBD represents the true glycosylation level of the SBD in native glucoamylase. Binding of beta-cyclodextrin to the SBD was investigated. It was found that the stoichiometry and the spectral perturbation of Trp residues were identical for both SBDs, but the engineered SBD bound less strongly to the ligand. At high concentrations of beta-cyclodextrin relative to the estimated Kd values, the maximum absorbance changes were identical. The observed difference at low beta-cyclodextrin levels was probably due to the higher level of glycosylation of the expressed SBD. We conclude that the proteolytically derived and expressed starch binding domains both bind 2 mol beta-cyclodextrin/mol protein, but that the pattern of glycosylation and strength of binding are different.

Aspergillus niger↗

PubMed1995

1H and 15N assignments and secondary structure of the starch-binding domain of glucoamylase from Aspergillus niger.

1H and 15N NMR resonance assignments of the granular starch-binding domain (SBD) of glucoamylase from Aspergillus niger have been made by multi-dimensional homonuclear and heteronuclear NMR techniques. Secondary structure analysis based on chemical shifts, 1H-1H NOEs, coupling constants and backbone amide exchange data indicates the presence of a well-defined beta-sheet structure. This consists of one parallel and five antiparallel pairs of beta-strands forming two beta-sheets. Cis-trans isomerisation of proline residues and O-glycosylation of threonine residues are observed and compared between the proteolytically derived SBD fragment and the recombinant protein. Structural features of the SBD in solution were compared to the X-ray crystal structure of a homologous domain of cyclodextrin glycosyltransferase from Bacillus circulans. There are some differences in the locations of the start and end of beta-strands but overall the two structures are very similar. This study will form the basis for the structure determination of the granular SBD and of its complexes.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

PubMed1995

Specificity of an esterase (XYLD) from Pseudomonas fluorescens subsp. cellulosa.

Activity of an esterase from Pseudomonas fluorescens subsp. cellulosa (XYLD) on an insoluble feruloylated hemicellulose substrate (de-starched wheat bran) was dependent on the source of added endo-xylanase. The esterase exhibited high selectivity for the nature, position of linkage and size of the feruloylated oligosaccharides generated by hydrolysis of the hemicellulose. Increased affinity of XYLD with increasing size of the oligosaccharide substrate suggests that optimal activity is observed on substrates with at least 4 sugars.

Coumaric Acids↗

PubMed1995

Direct separation of hydroperoxy- and hydroxy-phosphatidylcholine derivatives: application to the assay of phospholipid hydroperoxide glutathione peroxidase.

We have developed a method for assaying the activity of phospholipid hydroperoxide glutathione peroxidase (PHGPx) which is both more sensitive and specific than the spectrophotometric assay. The assay is based on the direct detection of the enzymatic product 1-palmitoyl-2-(13-hydroxy-cis-9, trans-11-octadecadienoyl)-L-3-phosphatidylcholine by HPLC. Under the conditions used, baseline separation is achieved for product and substrate. The utility of the method is demonstrated by the measurement of PHGPx activity in crude extracts from human lenses and from human Hep G2 hepatoma cells. This method is also suitable for measuring the specificity of PHGPx for cofactors apart from glutathione. The assay was used to demonstrate that cysteine alone at pH 7.4 mimics PHGPx activity.

Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid↗

PubMed1995

Release of ferulic acid from wheat bran by a ferulic acid esterase (FAE-III) from Aspergillus niger.

Ferulic acid was efficiently released from a wheat bran preparation by a ferulic acid esterase from Aspergillus niger (FAE-III) when incubated together with a Trichoderma viride xylanase (a maximum of 95% total ferulic acid released after 5 h incubation). FAE-III by itself could release ferulic acid but at a level almost 24-fold lower than that obtained in the presence of the xylanase (2 U). Release of ferulic acid was proportional to the FAE-III concentration between 0.1 U and 1.3 U, but the presence of low levels of xylanase (0.1 U) increased the amount of ferulic acid released 6-fold. Total sugar release was not influenced by the action of FAE-III on the wheat bran, but the rate of release of the apparent end-products of xylanase action (xylose and xylobiose) was elevated by the presence of the esterase. The results show that FAE-III and the xylanase act together to break down feruloylated plant cell-wall polysaccharides to give a high yield of ferulic acid.

Aspergillus niger↗