10-39: Effect of homo polyamino acid on enzymatic hydrolysis of cellulose

Enzymatic hydrolysis of cellulose, imperative for the conversion of biomass feedstocks to value-added chemicals, can be enhanced by some polymeric substances such as polyalkoxylate and protein.  Understanding such polymer effect is of importance for the development of inexpensive enzymatic technology for biomass utilization.  It has been postulated that these polymers affect cellulases’ activity by binding to lignocellulose’s hydrophobic surfaces and consequently decreasing non-productive cellulase adsorption onto the surfaces.  In an attempt to more quantitatively probe this mechanistic hypothesis, we investigated a series of homo polyamino acids with different hydrophobicity and other properties.  No association was observed between the hydrophobicity and cellulase enhancement.  Polytyrosine exerted a significant inhibition on cellulase, an effect likely attributable to the polyphenol-protein interaction known detrimental to cellulase.  Potential implication of the observation in biomass research was discussed.