| Research Abstract |
Preparation of algal cell wall-decomposing enzymes.
A search was undertaken to isolate bacteria from natural habitats which were able to degrade constitutive polysaccharides of algal cell wall ( beta-1,4-mannan, beta-1,3-xylan, alginate, porphyran, agar, and fucoidan). A lot of such bacteria were obtained, and the strains with a high productivity of polysaccharide-degrading enzyme were selected. A bacterium with high productivity of beta-1,4-mannan-degrading enzyme was isolated from intestinal contents of a freshwater fish, and was assigned to tile genus Aeromonas. All of the bacteria selected for producers of the other polysaccharides-degrading enzymes were originated from marine environment, and were assigned to the genus Vibrio. On the other hand, activities of polysaccharide-degrading enzymes were determined for the viscera of many marine animals. The extract of hepatopancreas from the marine snails, topshell and abalone, possessed high activity of many polysaccharide-degrading enzymes. A mixture of bacterial beta-1,4-mannan-, beta-1,3-xylan-, and porphyran-degrading enzymes released proto plast from thalli of a red alga, Porphyra yezoensis. The mixture of several bacterial enzymes and the extract of topshell hepatopancreas was a useful tool to release protoplast from many species of green, brown, and red algae.
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