Dependency of the hydrogen bonding capacity of the solvent anion on the thermal stability of feruloyl esterases in ionic liquid systems

Three feruloyl esterases, EC 3.1.1.73, (FAEs), namely FAE A from Aspergillus niger (AnFaeA), FAE C from Aspergillus nidulans (AndFaeC), and the FAE activity in a commercial b-glucanase mixture from Humicola insolens (Ultraflo L) were tested for their ability to catalyse esterification of sinapic acid with glycerol in four ionic liquid (IL) systems. The IL systems were systematically composed of two selected pairs of cations and anions, respectively: [BMIm][PF6], [C2OHMIm][PF6], [BMIm][BF4], and [C2OHMIm][BF4]. AnFaeA had activity in [PF6]--based ILs, whereas the AndFaeC and the FAE in Ultraflo L had no appreciable activities and were generally unstable in the IL systems. FAE stability in the IL systems was apparently highly dependent on enzyme structure, and notably AnFaeA’s similarity to IL-compatible lipases may explain its stability. The thermal stability of AnFaeA was higher in buffer than in the IL systems, but at 40 ◦C and below there was no significant difference in AnFaeA stability between the buffer and the [PF6]--based systems: AnFaeA was stable in the [BMIm][PF6] and [C2OHMIm][PF6] systems for 2 h at 40 ◦C. However, the IL anion had a major effect on stability: [BF4]- caused rapid inactivation of AnFaeA, while [PF6]- did not. The cation did not have a similar effect. These observations could be explained in terms of the hydrogen bonding capacity of IL cations and anions via COSMO-RS simulations.