Synergistic inhibition of catalase activity by food colorants sunset yellow and curcumin: An experimental and MLSD simulation approach.

Utilizing food additives at their optimized concentration is believed to be relatively safe, but their combinatorial effects remain largely unexplored. The influence of mixed food additives on the macromolecules may be altered by synergistic or antagonistic effects. It is previously shown that curcumin enhances the catalase activity by affecting its structural pocket in the active site. The aim of this study was to investigate the combination effects of food colorants sunset yellow FCF (SNY) and curcumin on the activation and/or inactivation of catalase activity using multispectral (fluorescence, FTIR, and UV-vis) analysis and simultaneous docking simulations. Kinetic studies demonstrated that SNY could significantly decrease catalase activity through a non-competitive inhibition mechanism. Fluorescence data indicated that SNY reduces intrinsic emission of catalase via a static quenching mechanism. Thermodynamic and molecular docking investigations suggested that catalase has one binding site for SNY, and hydrogen binding plays a main role in the binding reaction of catalase -SNY complex. Molecular dynamic simulation data indicated that the curcumin binding to the cavity, in the middle of the catalase helical domain, facilitates SNY binding to the enzyme pocket. For this purpose, the equilibrium dialysis system was used to study the stability and reversibility of SNY-catalase in the absence or presence of curcumin. The obtained data indicated that the binding of SNY-catalase is reversible and the stability of the complex is time-dependent. However, curcumin could make the complex more stable enhancing the SNY inhibition of catalase activity.