Activated effect of lignin on α-amylase

This paper reports a new kind of activator of α-amylase, lignin, which can greatly increase α-amylase activity. The promoted ratio of lignin is even much higher than that of chloride ion, the traditional activator of α-amylase. Further experimental results reveal that lignin may interact with α-amylase to form a 1:1 complex with a binding constant of 4.47 × 105 M−1. The binding is spontaneous and lignin/α-amylase complex formation is an exothermal reaction. Hydrogen bonding plays a key role and non-radiation energy transfers from α-amylase to lignin in the binding process. Lignin, combining with α-amylase, conforms to a first-order exponential decay function. The formation of the lignin/α-amylase complex results in the reduction of α-helical content from 57.7% to 53.9%, the increase of the polarity around tryptophan residues, the decrease of the hydrophobicity, and the enlargement of protein granule volume. This work will give a deeper insight into lignin as a kind of dietary fibre, known as an important food functional factor. Furthermore, it also contributes to the exploration of an activator of α-amylase, used in the food industry.