Arabinofuranosidases

Abstract

The present invention relates to isolated polypeptides having alpha-L-arabinofuranosidase activity and isolated nucleic acid sequences encoding the polypeptides. The invention also relates to nucleic acid constructs, vectors, and host cells comprising the nucleic acid sequences as well as methods for producing and using the polypeptides.

1 - 18 . (canceled) 
     
     
         19 . An isolated arabinofuranosidase which is selected from the group consisting of: 
       a) a polypeptide having an amino acid sequence as the mature peptide shown in SEQ ID NO: 2, or which can be obtained there from by substitution, deletion, and/or insertion of one or more amino acids;
 b) an analogue of the polypeptide of (a) which:
 i) has at least 80% homology with said polypeptide, or 
 ii) is an allelic variant of said polypeptide, 
 
 c) a polypeptide which is encoded by a nucleic acid sequence which hybridizes under high stringency conditions with a complementary strand of the nucleic acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 1 encoding the mature polypeptide or a subsequence thereof having at least 100 nucleotides; 
 d) a polypeptide having an amino acid sequence as the mature peptide shown in SEQ ID NO: 4, or which can be obtained therefrom by substitution, deletion, and/or insertion of one or more amino acids; 
 e) an analogue of the polypeptide of (d) which:
 i) has at least 60% homology with said polypeptide, or 
 ii) is an allelic variant of said polypeptide, and 
 
 f) a polypeptide which is encoded by a nucleic acid sequence which hybridizes under high stringency conditions with a complementary strand of the nucleic acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 3 encoding the mature polypeptide or a subsequence thereof having at least 100 nucleotides. 
 
     
     
         20 . The arabinofuranosidase of  claim 19 , which is native to a strain of  Humicola.    
     
     
         21 . The arabinofuranosidase of  claim 19 , which is native to a strain of  H. insolens.    
     
     
         22 . The arabinofuranosidase of  claim 19 , which is native to a strain of  Meripilus.    
     
     
         23 . The arabinofuranosidase of  claim 19 , which is native to a strain of  Meripilus giganteus.    
     
     
         24 . A composition comprising the arabinofuranosidase of  claim 19 . 
     
     
         25 . A process of treating an arabinoxylan-containing substrate, comprising treating the arabinoxylan substrate with an arabinofuranosidase of  claim 19 . 
     
     
         26 . The process of  claim 25 , wherein the arabinoxylan-containing substrate is selected from the group consisting of herbaceous and/or woody energy crops, agricultural food and feed crops, animal feed products, tubers, roots, stems, legumes, cassava peels, cocoa pods, rice husks and/or hulls, rice bran from rice polishing, cobs, straw, hulls and/or husks from cereal grain, pressed sugar cane stalk, sugar beet pulp, locust bean pulp, vegetable or fruit pomaces, cereals or whole grain agricultural crop waste, straw, stalks, leaves, corn bran, husks, cobs, rind, shells, pods, wood waste, bark, shavings, sawdust, wood pulp, pulping liquor, waste paper, cardboard, construction and demolition wood waste, industrial or municipal waste water solids or sludge, manure, by-product from brewing and/or fermentation processes, wet distillers grain, dried distillers grain, spent grain, vinasse and bagasse. 
     
     
         27 . A nucleic acid sequence comprising a nucleic acid sequence which encodes the arabinofuranosidase of  claim 19 . 
     
     
         28 . A nucleic acid construct, recombinant expression vector, or recombinant host cell comprising the nucleic acid sequence of  claim 27  operably linked to one or more control sequences capable of directing the expression of the arabinofuranosidase in a suitable expression host. 
     
     
         29 . A method for producing an arabinofuranosidase comprising
 (a) cultivating the host cell of  claim 28  under conditions conducive to production of the arabinofuranosidase, and   (b) recovering the arabinofuranosidase.