Evaluation of the Potential of Fungal and Plant Laccases for Active-Packaging Applications

Abstract

Laccases from Trametes versicolor (TvL), Myceliophthora thermophila (MtL), and Rhus vernicifera (RvL) were investigated with regard to their potential utilization as oxygen scavengers in active packages containing food susceptible to oxidation reactions. The substrate selectivity of the laccases was investigated with a set of 17 reducing substrates, mainly phenolic compounds. The temperature dependence of reactions performed at low temperatures (4-31 °C) was studied. Furthermore, the laccases were subjected to immobilization in a latex/clay matrix and drying procedures performed at temperatures up to 105 °C. The results show that it is possible to immobilize the laccases with retained activity after dispersion coating, drying at 75-105 °C, and subsequent storage of the enzyme-containing films at 4 °C. TvL and, to some extent, MtL were promiscuous with regard to their reducing substrate, in the sense that the difference in activity with the 17 substrates tested was relatively small. RvL, on the other hand, showed high selectivity, primarily toward substrates resembling its natural substrate urushiol. When tested at 7 °C, all three laccases retained >20% of the activity they had at 25 °C, which suggests that it would be possible to utilize the laccases also in refrigerated food packages. Coating and drying resulted in a remaining enzymatic activity ranging from 18 to 53%, depending on the drying conditions used. The results indicate that laccases are useful for active-packaging applications and that the selectivity for reducing substrates is an important characteristic of laccases from different sources.

Electrospinning of PLA Nanofibers: Recent Advances and Its Potential Application for Food Packaging

“…Oxygen scavengers like eosin, palladium, and laccases are used for controlling the residual oxygen levels that can make a difference to off-flavor development, color changes, nutrition losses as well as microbial growth in packaged foods. 61,122,123 Cherpinski et al electrospun the poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) (PHB) oxygen scavenging films containing palladium nanoparticles. They found that the presence of palladium nanoparticles enhanced the barrier property of PHB films against water and oxygen.…”

“…Besides antimicrobial and antioxidant agents, other types of active agents including oxygen scavengers, carbon dioxide emitters, and ethylene scavengers have been used to preserve the quality and extend the shelf life of foodstuff as well. Oxygen scavengers like eosin, palladium, and laccases are used for controlling the residual oxygen levels that can make a difference to off-flavor development, color changes, nutrition losses as well as microbial growth in packaged foods. ,, Cherpinski et al electrospun the poly­(3-hydroxybutyrate) (PHB) oxygen scavenging films containing palladium nanoparticles. They found that the presence of palladium nanoparticles enhanced the barrier property of PHB films against water and oxygen .…”

Cu–Ethanolamine Nanozymes Promote Urushiol Oxidation of Lacquer

“…Laccase is a polyphenol oxidase containing copper ions, soluble in urushiol. Although the total content of laccase in raw lacquer is very low, their role is particularly important [18][19][20][21][22][23][24]. In the drying process of raw paint, the copper ions in laccase catalyze the drying of paint films by transferring electrons.…”

Fractionated Lignosulfonates for Laccase-Catalyzed Oxygen-Scavenging Films and Coatings

“…Previous research on laccase and oxygen scavenging for active packaging has focused on small phenolic compounds [ 21 ], and on the possibility to use polymeric substances such as lignosulfonates and other technical lignin preparations including Kraft lignin, organosolv lignin, and hydrolysis lignin [ 7 , 16 ]. However, there are no studies to date on how the properties of a certain type of lignin derivative affect the reaction.…”