Production, Extraction and Characterization of Lipases from the Antarctic Yeast Guehomyces pullulans

The production of extracellular lipases from the Antarctic yeast Guehomyces pullulans is induced using an olive oil medium as an inductor substrate and a first characterization of its enzyme, using the protein extract obtained from the medium, is described. For this, the effect of pH and temperature on the lipase activity are evaluated and the enzyme kinetic for the lipase is determined. Lipase production was 0.27 U/mL, a high value compared to lipolytic activities in non-optimized media. However, this value can be increased by optimizing the culture medium. The lipase of G. pullulans has maximum activity at pH 8.0 and 40°C (thermal stability 40-50°C). Regarding the kinetic parameters, a K_M = 3.7×10^-4 M was obtained, a value located in the range of industrial lipases. In addition, its kinetics presented the phenomenon of interfacial activation. The results presented in this work show the biotechnological potential of the lipase due its biochemical properties and are useful for later work directed to study other factors that affect the enzyme activity and potential biotechnological applications of the Guehomyces pullulans lipase.