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Eighteen short- to medium-chain monounsaturated fatty acids were screened for hydroxylation and epoxidation using eleven different peroxygenase preparations. Most of these unspecific peroxygenases (UPOs) are secreted by fungal species of the dark-spored basidiomycetous families Psathyrellaceae and Strophariaceae, two belonged to the white-spored genus Marasmius (Marasmiaceae), and one belonged to the ascomycetous family Chaetomiaceae. The fatty acids (FAs) studied were categorized into three groups based on the position of the double bond: (i) terminal unsaturated FAs (between ω and ω-1), (ii) α-β-unsaturated FAs (between C2 and C3), and (iii) β-γ-unsaturated FAs (between C3 and C4). Their chain lengths ranged from three to nine carbon atoms. FAs with a terminal double bond were significantly oxidized by only two UPOs, namely CglUPO and CraUPO (peroxygenases from Chaetomium globosum and Coprinellus radians, respectively), producing different products. FAs with internal double bonds were converted by all tested UPOs. While epoxides were observed as products in the case of α-β-unsaturated fatty acids, only CglUPO formed β-γ-epoxides from the corresponding FAs. The product pattern of the other UPOs for β-γ-unsaturated FAs was quite similar. On the other hand, the product pattern for oxidized α-β-unsaturated FAs was more variable and, in some cases, specific to a particular UPO. For example, in the reaction with trans-2-nonenoic acid, the enzymes clustered into six groups based on the formed products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The extracellular aromatic peroxygenase of the agaric fungus Agrocybe aegerita catalyzed the H2O2-dependent cleavage of non-phenolic arylglycerol- β-aryl ethers ( β-O-4 ethers). For instance 1-(3,4-dimethoxyphenyl)-2-(2-methoxy-phenoxy)propane-1,3-diol, a recalcitrant dimeric lignin model compound that represents the major non-phenolic substructure in lignin, was selectively O-demethylated at the para-methoxy group to give formaldehyde and 1-(4-hydroxy-3-methoxyphenyl)-2-(2-methoxyphenoxy)propane-1,3-diol. The phenol moiety of the latter compound was then enzymatically oxidized into phenoxy radicals and a quinoid cation, which initiated the autocatalytic cleavage of the dimer and the formation of monomers such as 2-methoxy-1,4-benzoquinone and phenoxyl-substituted propionic acid. The introduction of 18O from H218O2 and H218O at different positions into the pro-ducts provided information about the routes of ether cleavage. Studies with a 14C-labeled lignin model dimer showed that more than 70% of the intermediates formed were further coupled to form polymers with molecular masses above 10 kDa. The results indicate that fungal aromatic peroxygenases may be involved in the bioconversion of methoxylated plant ingredients originating from lignin or other sources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tyrian purple (also known as royal or imperial purple) is the oldest known commercial pigment and still one of the most expensive dyes, often associated with the wardrobes of clergy and royalty. It is a brominated derivative of indigo, a natural dye that has been used since 4000 BC. Moreover, just recently, the therapeutic value of indigoids for the treatment of several disorders was discovered. The manufacturing of indigo derivatives by the existing chemical routes has become increasingly uninteresting due to the use of aggressive reagents, expensive starting materials and high-energy costs. Thus, both dyestuff manufacturers and the pharmaceutical industry are interested in the development of gentle preparation methods of indigoids from simple precursors. Here, we describe a simple enzymatic method for the one-step synthesis of Tyrian purple and other indigo derivatives with fungal peroxygenases (UPO, EC 1.11.2.1). The reaction does not require complex co-substrates and works well in phosphate buffers with H2O2 (<0.1 wt%) and less than 5% (v/v) acetonitrile as co-solvent. We demonstrate the scaling up of the reaction to 10 Liters and established thereupon an environmentally friendly combined synthesis and in-situ dyeing process, further simplifying the manufacturing of vat-dyed fabrics. Eventually, we screened a number of halogen-substituted indoles in the search for novel indigo derivatives, which may be of interest for pharmaceutical and/or dyeing purposes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The mushroom Agrocybe aegerita secretes a peroxidase (AaP) that catalyzes halogenations and hydroxylations. Phenol was brominated to 2- and 4-bromophenol (ratio 1:4) and chlorinated to a lesser extent to 2-chlorophenol. The purified enzyme was found to oxidize toluene via benzyl alcohol and benzaldehyde into benzoic acid. A second fraction of toluene was hydroxylated to give p-cresol as well as o-cresol and methyl-p-benzoquinone. The UV–Vis absorption spectrum of purified AaP showed high similarity to a resting state cytochrome P450 with the Soret band at 420nm and additional maxima at 278, 358, 541 and 571nm; the AaP CO-complex had a distinct absorption maximum at 445nm that is characteristic for heme-thiolate proteins. AaP regioselectively hydroxylated naphthalene to 1-naphthol and traces of 2-naphthol (ratio 36:1). H2O2 was necessarily required for AaP function and hence the hydroxylations catalyzed by AaP can be designated as peroxygenation and the enzyme as an extracellular peroxygenase. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: A biosensor for detecting the aromatic substance 4-nitrophenol based on Agrocybe aegerita peroxygenase (AaP) immobilized with chitosan-stabilized gold nanoparticles is presented here. This biosensor measures the enzymatic product of 4-nitrophenol peroxygenation, 4-nitrocatechol, which is electrochemically detected in the presence of hydrogen peroxide. Cyclic voltammetry and amperometry were used to characterize the proposed biosensor. The linear range of the AaP biosensor for the detection of 4-nitrophenol was between 10 and 30μM with a detection limit of 0.2μM (based on the S/N=3). The catalytic property of AaP to oxidize 4-nitrophenol was compared with two other heme proteins, a camphor-hydroxylating cytochrome P450 monooxygenase (P450cam, CYP101) and horseradish peroxidase (HRP). The results revealed that only AaP is capable of catalyzing the hydroxylation of 4-nitrophenol into 4-nitrocatechol. Consequently, AaP could be a particularly potent biocatalyst that may fill the gap between cytochrome P450s and common heme peroxidases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The catalase activity of three unspecific peroxygenases (UPOs) from the agaric basidiomycetes Agrocybe aegerita , Coprinopsis cinerea and Marasmius rotula was investigated. The study included analysis of pH dependency of the catalase reaction and H 2 O 2 mediated enzyme inactivation as well as experiments on the influence of a second substrate on the course of catalase reaction. Apparent kinetic parameters (K m , k cat ) for the catalase activity of UPOs were determined. Inactivation of UPOs by H 2 O 2 is discussed with regard to O 2 production and remaining UPO activity. Furthermore formation of biliverdin as heme destruction product was demonstrated along with the formation of UPO compound III as a possible intermediate that forces the destruction process. Radical trapping experiments with methyl benzoate gave indication for the formation of hydroxyl radicals in the presence of excess H 2 O 2 . Eventually, a plausible pathway of heme destruction has been proposed, proceeding via UPO compound III and subsequent hydroxyl radical formation, which in turn may cause heme bleaching and verdoheme and biliverdin formation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] Four peroxygenase catalyze the subsequent oxidation of cyclohexane to cyclohexanone. [•] The conversion was most efficient with MroUPO and yielded 87% total product. [•] AaeUPO and rCciUPO produced mainly cyclohexanol and only traces of cyclohexanone. [•] MroUPO and rNOVO produced cyclohexanol and cyclohexanone in almost equal amounts. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Unspecific peroxygenases (EC 1.11.2.1) represent a group of secreted heme-thiolate proteins that are capable of catalyzing the mono-oxygenation of diverse organic compounds, using only H2O2 as a co-substrate. Here we show that the peroxygenase secreted by the fungus Agrocybe aegerita catalyzed the oxidation of 20 different alkenes. Five branched alkenes, among them 2,3-dimethyl-2-butene and cis-2-butene, as well as propene and butadiene were epoxidized with complete regioselectivity. Longer linear alkenes with a terminal double bond (e.g. 1-octene) and cyclic alkenes (e.g. cyclohexene) were converted into the corresponding epoxides and allylic hydroxylation products; oxidation of the cyclic monoterpene limonene yielded three oxygenation products (two epoxides and an alcohol). In the case of 1-alkenes, the conversion occurred with moderate stereoselectivity, in which the preponderance for the (S)-enantiomer reached up to 72% ee for the epoxide product. The apparent Michaelis–Menten constant (K m) for the epoxidation of the model substrate 2-methyl-2-butene was 5mM, the turnover number (k cat) 1.3×103 s−1 and the calculated catalytic efficiency, k cat/K m, was 2.5×105 M−1 s−1. As epoxides represent chemical building blocks of high relevance, new enzymatic epoxidation pathways are of interest to complement existing chemical and biotechnological approaches. Stable and versatile peroxygenases as that of A. aegerita may form a promising biocatalytic platform for the development of such enzyme-based syntheses. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Aromatic peroxygenases are extracellular fungal biocatalysts that selectively oxidize a variety of organic compounds. We found that the peroxygenase of the fungus Agrocybe aegerita (AaeAPO) catalyzes the H2O2-dependent hydroxylation of diverse flavonoids. The reactions proceeded rapidly and regioselectively yielding preferentially monohydroxylated products, e.g., from flavanone, apigenin, luteolin, flavone as well as daidzein, quercetin, kaempferol, and genistein. In addition to hydroxylation, O-demethylation of fully methoxylated tangeretin was catalyzed by AaeAPO. The enzyme was merely lacking activity on the quercetin glycoside rutin, maybe due to sterical hindrance by the bulky sugar substituents. Mechanistic studies indicated the presence of epoxide intermediates during hydroxylation and incorporation of H2O2-derived oxygen into the reaction products. Our results raise the possibility that fungal peroxygenases may be useful for versatile, cost-effective, and scalable syntheses of flavonoid metabolites. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: We report on the redox behaviour of the peroxygenase from Agrocybe aegerita (AaeAPO) which has been electrostatically immobilized in a matrix of chitosan-embedded gold nanoparticles on the surface of a glassy carbon electrode. AaeAPO contains a covalently bound heme-thiolate as the redox active group that exchanges directly electrons with the electrode via the gold nanoparticles. The formal potential E °′ of AaeAPO in the gold nanoparticles-chitosan film was estimated to be −(286±9) mV at pH 7.0. The heterogeneous electron transfer rate constant (k s ) increases from 3.7 in the scan rate range from 0.2 to 3.0Vs−1 and level off at 63.7s−1. Furthermore, the peroxide-dependent hydroxylation of aromatic compounds was applied to develop a sensor for naphthalene and nitrophenol. The amperometric measurements of naphthalene are based on the indication of H2O2 consumption. For the chitosan-embedded gold nanoparticle system, the linear range extends from 4 to 40μM naphthalene with a detection limit of 4.0μM (S/N=3) and repeatability of 5.7% for 40μM naphthalene. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Fungal peroxygenases have recently been shown to catalyze remarkable oxidation reactions. The present study addresses the mechanism of benzylic oxygenations catalyzed by the extracellular peroxygenase of the agaric basidiomycete Agrocybe aegerita. The peroxygenase oxidized toluene and 4-nitrotoluene via the corresponding alcohols and aldehydes to give benzoic acids. The reactions proceeded stepwise with total conversions of 93% for toluene and 12% for 4-nitrotoluene. Using H2 18O2 as the co-substrate, we show here that H2O2 is the source of the oxygen introduced at each reaction step. A. aegerita peroxygenase resembles cytochromes P450 and heme chloroperoxidase in catalyzing benzylic hydroxylations. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The extracellular heme-thiolate peroxygenase of Agrocybe aegerita catalyzed the H2O2-dependent hydroxylation of 2-phenoxypropionic acid (POPA) to give the herbicide precursor 2-(4-hydroxyphenoxy)propionic acid (HPOPA). The reaction proceeded regioselectively with an isomeric purity near 98%, and yielded the desired R-isomer of HPOPA with an enantiomeric excess of 60%. 18O-labeling experiments showed that the phenolic hydroxyl in HPOPA originated from H2O2, which establishes that the reaction is mechanistically a peroxygenation. Our results raise the possibility that fungal peroxygenases may be useful for a variety of organic oxidations. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: An extracellular peroxygenase of Agrocybe aegerita catalyzed the H2O2-dependent hydroxylation of the multi-function beta-adrenergic blocker propranolol (1-naphthalen-1-yloxy-3-(propan-2-ylamino)propan-2-ol) and the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug diclofenac (2-[2-[(2,6-dichlorophenyl)amino]phenyl]acetic acid) to give the human drug metabolites 5-hydroxypropranolol (5-OHP) and 4′-hydroxydiclofenac (4′-OHD). The reactions proceeded regioselectively with high isomeric purity and gave the desired 5-OHP and 4′-OHD in yields up to 20% and 65%, respectively. 18O-labeling experiments showed that the phenolic hydroxyl groups in 5-OHP and 4′-OHD originated from H2O2, which establishes that the reaction is mechanistically a peroxygenation. Our results raise the possibility that fungal peroxygenases may be useful for versatile, cost-effective, and scalable syntheses of drug metabolites. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]