Cloning of β-primeverosidase from tea leaves, a key enzyme in tea aroma formation

A beta-primeverosidase from tea (Camellia sinensis) plants is a unique disaccharide-specific glycosidase, which hydrolyzes aroma precursors of beta-primeverosides (6-O-beta-D-xylopyranosyl-beta-D-glucopyranosides) to liberate various aroma compounds, and the enzyme is deeply concerned with the floral aroma formation in oolong tea and black tea during the manufacturing process. The beta-primeverosidase was purified from fresh leaves of a cultivar for green tea (C. sinensis var sinensis cv Yabukita), and its partial amino acid sequences were determined. The beta-primeverosidase cDNA has been isolated from a cDNA library of cv Yabukita using degenerate oligonucleotide primers. The cDNA insert encodes a polypeptide consisting of an N-terminal signal peptide of 28 amino acid residues and a 479-amino acid mature protein. The beta-primeverosidase protein sequence was 50% to 60% identical to beta-glucosidases from various plants and was classified in a family 1 glycosyl hydrolase. The mature form of the beta-primeverosidase expressed in Escherichia coli was able to hydrolyze beta-primeverosides to liberate a primeverose unit and aglycons, but did not act on 2-phenylethyl beta-D-glucopyranoside. These results indicate that the beta-primeverosidase selectively recognizes the beta-primeverosides as substrates and specifically hydrolyzes the beta-glycosidic bond between the disaccharide and the aglycons. The stereochemistry for enzymatic hydrolysis of 2-phenylethyl beta-primeveroside by the beta-primeverosidase was followed by H-1-nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, revealing that the enzyme hydrolyzes the beta-primeveroside by a retaining mechanism. The roles of the beta-primeverosidase in the defense mechanism in tea plants and the floral aroma formation during tea manufacturing process are also discussed.