Influence of pulsed electric field on various enzyme activities

Effects of high-voltage pulsed electric field (PEF) on native or thermal denatured enzyme activities were studied. When PEF was applied to various native enzymes, 105–120% of initial enzyme activities were observed after PEF treatment. It was suggested that an activation of enzyme would be possible by PEF treatment. We attempted a refolding of thermal denatured enzyme by using PEF. When PEF was applied to denatured peroxidase, enzyme refolding was accelerated in PEF and 60% of initial activity was observed after 12 kV/cm and 30 s of PEF treatment although spontaneous refolding of this enzyme resulted in 40% of initial activity. On the other hand, when PEF was applied to thermal denatured lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), further PEF-induced inactivation was observed. It was suggested that the influence of PEF is dependent on the type of enzyme.