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Per Persson. Photo.

Per Persson

Dean

Per Persson. Photo.

Proteolysis of Iron Oxide-Associated Bovine Serum Albumin

Author

  • Zhaomo Tian
  • Tao Wang
  • Anders Tunlid
  • Per Persson

Summary, in English

Proteins are a substantial nitrogen source in soils provided that they can be hydrolyzed into bioavailable small peptides or amino acids. However, the strong associations between proteins and soil minerals restrict such proteolytic reactions. This study focused on how an extracellular fungal protease (Rhizopus sp.) hydrolyzed iron oxide-associated bovine serum albumin (BSA) and the factors that affected the proteolysis. We combined batch experiments with size-exclusion and reversed phase liquid chromatography and in situ infrared spectroscopic measurements to monitor the generation of proteolytic products in solution as well as the real-time changes of the adsorbed BSA during 24 h. Results showed that protease hydrolyzed the iron oxide-associated BSA directly at the surface without an initial desorption of BSA. Concurrently, the protease was adsorbed to vacant surface sites at the iron oxides, which significantly slowed down the rate of proteolysis. This inhibiting effect was counteracted by the presence of preadsorbed phosphate or by increasing the BSA coverage, which prevented protease adsorption. Fast initial rates of iron oxide-associated BSA proteolysis, comparable to proteolysis of BSA in solution, and very slow rates at prolonged proteolysis suggest a large variability in mineral-associated proteins as a nitrogen source in soils and that only a fraction of the protein is bioavailable.

Department/s

  • MEMEG
  • BECC: Biodiversity and Ecosystem services in a Changing Climate
  • Microbial Ecology
  • Centre for Environmental and Climate Science (CEC)

Publishing year

2020

Language

English

Pages

5121-5130

Publication/Series

Environmental Science & Technology

Volume

54

Issue

8

Document type

Journal article

Publisher

The American Chemical Society (ACS)

Topic

  • Microbiology

Status

Published

Project

  • MICCS - Molecular Interactions Controlling soil Carbon Sequestration

Research group

  • Microbial Ecology

ISBN/ISSN/Other

  • ISSN: 1520-5851