Production and characterization of biochemical properties of L-Asparaginase by indigenous yeast isolated from soil of Iran

Introduction: The use of L-asparaginase as a chemotherapeutic agent is an effective strategy for the treatment of leukemic lymphoblasts. Since the use of bacterial L-asparaginase causes side effects due to hypersensitivity reactions, search for new enzyme sources is one of the active research areas. In this study, the characterization of produced L-asparaginase by indigenous yeast strains was investigated. Material and methods: In this study, 130 yeast strains were evaluated. Remarkably, AG90 isolate with 0.94 IU/ml enzyme production was selected as the superior strain. Results: The molecular identification of the AG90 showed that this strain exhibited a high level of similarity (99%) with Sarocladium sp. and introduced as a Sarocladium sp. AG90. The fermentation broth of the superior strain showed that 86% of the enzyme was produced extracellularly. The Km and Vmax values of the produced enzyme for the L-Asparagine substrate were calculated as 9.74 mM and 19.19 μmol/min, respectively. Discussion: The obtained results in this study can help to introduce a new enzyme with eukaryotic origin to reduce the toxicity, sensitivity and side effects associated of drug consumption.