The quest for industrial enzymes from microorganisms^†

^†This work is a translation of an original work in Japanese in the Japan Society for Bioscience, Biotechnology, and Agrochemistry http://doi.10.1271/kagakutoseibutsu.54.61.

Figures & data

Fig. 1. Sources of enzyme-producing microorganisms at Amano Enzyme Inc.

Fig. 2. Enzyme-producing bacteria and their respective enzyme conformations.

Notes: (a) Transglutaminase-producing Streptomyces mobaraensis strain S-8112 (left) and the conformation of its transglutaminase (right; green: mature form, gray: proregion). (b) Protein-glutaminase-producing Chryseobacterium proteolyticum strain 9670 (left) and the conformation of its protein-glutaminase (right; green: mature form, gray: proregion). (c) β-Amylase-producing Bacillus flexus strain APC9451 (left) and the conformation of its β-amylase (right).

Fig. 3. Amano Enzyme microbial strain library ((a) left: lyophilized ampule, right: glycerol stock) and an example of screening for enzyme production. ((b) left: plate assay, right: enzyme assay). Arrows (←) indicate positive strains.

Fig. 4. Soil collection from a forest in Myanmar (a) and isolated microbial strains (b).