Odorant binding proteins: a biotechnological tool for odour control

Abstract

The application of an odorant binding protein for odour control and fragrance delayed release from a textile surface was first explored in this work. Pig OBP-1 gene was cloned and expressed in Escherichia coli, and the purified protein was biochemically characterized. The IC₅₀ values (concentrations of competitor that caused a decay of fluorescence to half-maximal intensity) were determined for four distinct fragrances, namely, citronellol, benzyl benzoate, citronellyl valerate and ethyl valerate. The results showed a strong binding of citronellyl valerate, citronellol and benzyl benzoate to the recombinant protein, while ethyl valerate displayed weaker binding. Cationized cotton substrates were coated with porcine odorant binding protein and tested for their capacity to retain citronellol and to mask the smell of cigarette smoke. The immobilized protein delayed the release of citronellol when compared to the untreated cotton. According to a blind evaluation of 30 assessors, the smell of cigarette smoke, trapped onto the fabrics' surface, was successfully attenuated by porcine odorant binding protein (more than 60 % identified the weakest smell intensity after protein exposure compared to β-cyclodextrin-treated and untreated cotton fabrics). This work demonstrated that porcine odorant binding protein can be an efficient solution to prevent and/or remove unpleasant odours trapped on the large surface of textiles. Its intrinsic properties make odorant binding proteins excellent candidates for controlled release systems which constitute a new application for this class of proteins.

Identification and characterisation of two general odourant‐binding proteins from the litchi fruit borer, Conopomorpha sinensis Bradley

“…38 Most of the studies regarding lepidopteran OBPs have focused on Noctuidae species, whereas OBP members from other families are relatively scarce. 39,40 In the present study, the full lengths of two GOBP cDNAs have been identified from the antennae of C. sinensis using RT-PCR and RACE techniques; these are the first GOBPs in the family Gracillariidae to date, and they enrich the base data for further structural, functional and evolutional studies of OBPs in Lepidoptera.…”

Beyond chemoreception: diverse tasks of soluble olfactory proteins in insects

“…In Ae. aegypti, these proteins were not investigated for their function, but it has been suggested that they might be involved in eggshell formation (Costa-da- Silva et al, 2013;Marinotti et al, 2014). In An.…”

“…A single report has been published on the use of a mammalian OBP in a filtering trap for the herbicide atrazine (Bianchi et al, 2013). Another interesting application of OBPs for removing unpleasant odours has been proposed by Silva et al (2013), who incorporated the pig OBP on fabrics for clothes. The immobilized protein served a dual purpose, removing or reducing cigarette odour and slowly releasing pleasant fragrances previously bound to the OBP.…”

Release of Fragrances from Cotton Functionalized with Carbohydrate-Binding Module Proteins

“…18 Silva et al explored, for the first time, the use of pig OBP-I to functionalize cotton fabrics, by electrostatic affinity, for the release of fragrances and the reduction of unpleasant odors, like cigarette smoke. 19 In this work, we explored two strategies for the release of βcitronellol from cotton functionalized with CBM-based fusion proteins. In the first strategy, pig OBP-I from Sus scrofa was fused with the CBM N 1 from Cellulomonas f imi (OBP::GQ 20 ::CBM) and incubated with the fragrance prior to cotton functionalization.…”