Synthesis of flavor esters by a novel lipase from Aspergillus niger in a soybean-solvent system

To find a lipase for synthesis of flavor esters in food processing, a total of 35 putative lipases from Aspergillus niger F0215 were heterologously expressed and their esterification properties in crude preparations were examined. One of them, named An-lipase with the highest esterification rate (23.1%) was selected for further study. The purified An-lipase had the maximal activity at 20 °C and pH 6.5 and the specific activity of 1293 U/mg. Sixty percent of the activity was maintained in a range of temperatures of 0–30 °C and pHs of 3.0–8.5. The highest hydrolysis activity of An-lipase was towards pNPC (C8), followed by pNPB (C4) and pNPA (C2), then pNPL (C12). Km, Vmax, kcat, and kcat/Km towards pNPC were 26.7 mmol/L, 129.9 mmol/(L h), 23.2 s−1, and 0.8/mM/s, respectively. The ethyl lactate, butyl butyrate, and ethyl caprylate flavor esters were produced by esterification of the corresponding acids with conversion efficiencies of 15.8, 37.5, and 24.7%, respectively, in a soybean-oil-based solvent system. In conclusion, An lipase identified in this study significantly mediated synthesis of predominant flavor esters (ethyl lactate, butyl butyrate, and ethyl caprylate) in a soybean-oil-lacking other toxic organic solvents, which has potential application in food industries.