Soluble and Nanoporous Silica Gel-Entrapped C-freundii Methionine gamma-Lyase

Methionine gamma-lyase is a pyridoxal 5'-phosphate dependent tetramer that catalyzes the alpha, gamma-elimination of methionine in ammonia, methanethiol and alpha-ketobutyrate. MGL catalytic power has been exploited as a therapeutic strategy to reduce the viability of cancer cells or bacteria. In order to obtain a stable enzyme to be delivered at the site of action, MGL can be encapsulated in a variety of matrices. As a reference encapsulation strategy we have prepared MGL nanoporous wet silica gels. Immobilized MGL gels were characterized with regards to activity, stability, absorption, circular dichroism and fluorescence properties and compared with soluble MGL. We found that MGL gels exhibit (i) spectroscopic properties very similar to MGL in solution, (ii) a higher stability with respect to the soluble enzyme and (iii) catalytic activity six-fold lower than in solution. These findings prove that MGL encapsulation is a suitable strategy for therapeutic applications.