Cloning, expression and characterization of an organic solvent tolerant lipase from Pseudomonas fluorescens JCM5963

A novel lipase gene from an organic solvent degradable strain Pseudomonas fluorescens JCM5963 was cloned, sequenced, and overexpressed as an N-terminus His-tag fusion protein in E. coli. The alignment of amino acid sequences revealed that the protein contained a lipase motif and shared a medium or high similarity with lipases from other Pseudomonas strains. It could be defined as a member of subfamily I.1 lipase. Most of the recombinant proteins expressed as enzymatically active aggregates soluble in 20 mM Tris–HCl buffer (pH 8.0) containing sodium deoxycholate are remarkably different from most subfamily I.1 and I.2 members of Pseudomonas lipases expressed as inactive inclusion body formerly described in E. coli. The recombinant lipase (rPFL) was purified to homogeneity by Ni-NTA affinity chromatography and Sephacryl S-200 gel filtration chromatography. The purified lipase was stable in broad ranges of temperatures and pH values, with the optimal temperature and pH value being 55 °C and 9.0, respectively. Its activity was found to increase in the presence of metal ions such as Ca2+, Sn2+ and some non-ionic surfactants. In addition, rPFL was activated by and remained stable in a series of water-miscible organic solvents solutions and highly tolerant to some water-immiscible organic solvents. These features render this novel lipase attraction for biotechnological applications in the field of organic synthesis and detergent additives.