NEW RHODOPHYCEOUS MUCOUS POLYSACCHARIDE DECOMPOSITION ENZYME, ITS PRODUCTION AND NEW MICROORGANISM THEREFOR

摘要

PURPOSE:To obtain a rhodophyceous mucous polysaccharide decomposition enzyme having excellent heat-resistance, to provide its production process and to obtain a new microorganism capable of economically producing the decomposition enzyme. CONSTITUTION:This rhodophyceous mucous polysaccharide decomposition enzyme catalyzes a reaction to hydrolyze a rhodophyceous mucous polysaccharide to endo-type substance and produce oligosaccharides mainly composed of a saccharide having a polymerization degree of 4 and has the following physical and chemical properties. The optimum temperature is 55 deg.C in the case of using a hot water extract of Gracilaria verrucosa as a substrate, it is stable at 50 deg.C at pH7.5 for 10min in the absence of substrate, it leaves about 72.5% of activity at 95 deg.C, etc. The decomposition enzyme can be collected from a cultured product of a soil-originated microbial strain. The microbial strain producing the decomposition enzyme is Pseudomonas sp. O-148 deposited in the name of FERM P-13767.