Characterization of novel thermophilic alpha-glucosidase from Bifidobacterium longum

In this study, the gene encoding α-glucosidase from Bifidobacterium longum subsp. longum JCM1217 (BLAG) was cloned and expressed in Escherichia coli. The amino acid sequence alignment demonstrated that BLAG belongs to glycoside hydrolase (GH) family 13. The optimal temperature for enzyme activity was 75 °C; about 80% of the catalytic activity was lost at 50 °C, which is very unusual for enzymes from the Bifidobacterium genus. In the presence of...