Role of glycosylation in secretion and stability of micromycetes α-galactosidase

The effect of the glycosylation inhibitors (tunicamycin and 2-deoxy-D-glucose) on the activity, stability and production of fungal glycosidases has been studied. It was shown that inhibition of N-glycosylation sites did not affect the secretion of Aspergillus niger α-galactosidase, however reduced yield of Cladosporium cladosporioides and Penicillium canescens α-galactosidases. Changes in the level of O-glycosylation resulted in a significant reduction in the activity and stability of α-galactosidases of all three producers tested. Activity of the modified enzymes was significantly lower than that of the native ones, and was 2.6 and 0.33 U/mg for A. niger α-galactosidase, 3.3 and 32.5 U/mg for C. cladosporioides α-galactosidase, 11.66 and 31.1 U/mg for P. canescens α-galactosidase, respectively. A. niger α-galactosidase completely lost activity during purification and storage. The decrease of thermal stability at 55 °C by 20% was shown for C. cladosporioides and P. canescens α-galactosidases. It was also noted that O-deglycosylation led to a decrease in resistance of these enzymes to the action of proteases.