Enzymes responsible for the metabolism of saikosaponins from Eubacterium sp. A-44, a human intestinal anaerobe.

From a human intestinal bacterium, Eubacterium sp. A-44, which is capable of hydrolyzing saikosaponins to saikogenins, two glycosidases, beta-D-glucosidase and a novel type of beta-D-fucosidase, were isolated and characterized as saikosaponin-hydrolyzing beta-D-glucosidase and prosaikogenin-hydrolyzing beta-D-fucosidase. Relative to the hydrolyzing activities toward saikosaponins a, b1 and b2, the beta-D-glucosidase showed lower ability to hydrolyze saikosaponin d, but no ability to hydrolyze saikosaponin c or prosaikogenins. By Sephacryl S-300 column chromatography, the molecular weight of prosaikogenin-hydrolyzing beta-D-fucosidase was estimated to be about 130 kDa. The beta-D-fucosidase could hydrolyze prosaikogenins A and F, but not prosaikogenins D and G or saikosaponins. Relative to p-nitrophenyl beta-D-fucoside-hydrolyzing activity, this enzyme had 32.0% and 22.2% of its hydrolyzing ability toward p-nitrophenyl beta-D-glucoside and p-nitrophenyl beta-D-galactoside, respectively. p-Nitrophenyl beta-D-fucoside-hydrolyzing activity was inhibited by D-fucose, and was weakly inhibited by D-glucose, D-glucono delta-lactone, D-galactose and D-galactono delta-lactone. By combining these two glycosidases, saikosaponins a and b1 were converted to their saikogenins via the corresponding prosaikogenins.