Bacterial Heme Peroxidases for Animal-Free Pathogen Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing heme peroxidases, such as bovine lactoperoxidase (LpoPOX) and cyanobacterial LspPOX, exhibit low enzymatic activity and high production costs, making them inefficient and expensive for large-scale pathogen control applications, and are difficult to produce without animal-derived materials.
Innovation Solution
Development of highly active bacterial heme peroxidases, such as HydPOX, HydPOXs, and OkePOXs, which demonstrate significantly increased enzymatic activity and stability, allowing for effective pathogen control with reduced enzyme usage and vegan production.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If bovine lactoperoxidase (LpoPOX) is used as a biocontrol agent, then pathogen control function is provided, but enzymatic activity is low and production cost is high
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies parameter changes by modifying the enzyme source from mammalian (bovine) to bacterial origin, fundamentally changing the biochemical parameters of the peroxidase enzyme. This results in significantly improved enzymatic activity with km values 5-10 fold lower and kcat values 2-5 fold higher than bovine lactoperoxidase, while maintaining the pathogen control function through the same peroxidase mechanism
2Reliability
If bovine lactoperoxidase (LpoPOX) is used as a biocontrol agent, then pathogen control function is provided, but production cost is high
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the expensive mammalian-derived enzyme with a bacterial peroxidase that can be produced through cost-effective bacterial fermentation. The bacterial system allows for scalable, animal-free production that dramatically reduces manufacturing costs while maintaining sufficient enzymatic activity for pathogen control applications
Solution Approach 2:
The bacterial peroxidase system enables self-service production through bacterial fermentation, eliminating the need for complex mammalian milk extraction processes. The bacteria can be cultured in standard fermentation systems, making the production process simpler, more scalable, and significantly cheaper than obtaining bovine lactoperoxidase from milk
3Reliability
If bovine lactoperoxidase (LpoPOX) is used as a biocontrol agent, then pathogen control function is provided, but animal free production is not possible
Solution Approach 1:
The patent inverts the traditional source hierarchy by moving from mammalian (bovine) to bacterial origin. This reversal enables animal-free production while maintaining or improving enzymatic performance, allowing the enzyme to be produced through bacterial fermentation in compliance with vegan and halal requirements without sacrificing pathogen control efficacy
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The bacterial heme peroxidases achieve enhanced pathogen killing activity by generating higher concentrations of intermediate reaction products, are stable across various temperatures, and can be produced in large quantities without animal-derived materials, making them cost-effective biocontrol agents.
Implementation Method 1
heme peroxidase enzymes catalyzing the oxidation of diverse substrates in the presence of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2)
Implementation Method 2
catalyzing the oxidation of diverse substrates in the presence of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2)
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention relates to means and methods comprising a bacterial heme peroxidase and/or a functional fragment thereof for medical and non-medical use in preventing and/or controlling a pathogen on food, plants, or in or on the human or animal body. The present invention thus relates to novel medical and non-medical uses of a bacterial heme peroxidase and/or a functional fragment thereof for preventing and/or controlling a pathogen on food, plants, or on the human or animal body. Furthermore, the present invention relates to corresponding methods comprising a bacterial heme peroxidase and/or a functional fragment thereof for preventing and/or controlling a pathogen on food, plants or on or in the human or animal body comprising applying a sufficient amount of the bacterial heme peroxidase and/or a functional fragment thereof on said food, plants, or on mucosae, skin, in particular epidermal skin like scalp or facial skin and/or teeth to reduce the number of cells of said pathogen. In addition, the invention relates to specific heme peroxidases that have been identified to have desired properties. The invention also relates to fragments of or small heme peroxidases that have particularly advantageous properties. Moreover, the present invention further relates to corresponding compositions comprising a bacterial heme peroxidase and/or a functional fragment thereof for preventing and/or controlling a pathogen on food, plants, or in or on the human or animal body. Kits comprising components used in the methods and compositions of the invention are also provided herein. Furthermore, provided is the use of a bacterial heme peroxidase and/or of a functional fragment thereof for the preparation of the compositions of the present invention. The present invention finally also relates to a method for producing a bacterial heme peroxidase protein and/or a functional fragment thereof in an engineered Bacillus subtilis strain. The inventive use of the bacterial heme peroxidase of the present invention and/or a functional fragment thereof for preventing and/or controlling a pathogen is, without being limiting, particularly useful in ecologically compatible commercial plant/crop protection campaigns as well as in daily personal care products such as toothpaste for example.