Degradation of agarophytic red algal cell wall components by new crude enzyme preparations

摘要

Several new crude enzyme preparations were isolated from a marine association of the agarolytic bacterium Cytophaga diffiuens and the infusorium Uronema marinum, an axenic culture of Cytophaga diffiuens, some species of land micro- and macromycetes adapted to assimilate red algal biomass and from the marine mollusc Littorina littorea. Fungal and mollusc enzyme preparations were shown to have cellulase, xylanase, protease and agarase activities. Fungal agarase activity was revealed only after 3-4 passages of the culture on the medium containing algal biomass. Enzyme preparations from the association and the pure bacterial culture growing on the medium with bactoagar as the sole carbon source contained only agarase activity. The maximum specific agarase activity was found in a preparation from the marine association. The preparations obtained can be used for isolating protoplasts and single cells from red seaweed thalli.