{
  "abstract": "Polycaprolactone (PCL) is a biodegradable polyester that can degrade slowly under ambient environmental conditions. Here, we explored natural fungal sequence diversity to identify cutinase-like enzymes (CLEs) with PCL-degrading activity. Using a previously reported Cryptococcus CLE as the query, bioinformatics analysis identified 14 fungal homologs that were subsequently expressed in the heterologous host Saccharomyces cerevisiae and screened using a plate-based assay. Nine homologs exhibited detectable PCL degradation, with three producing larger degradation zones than the Cryptococcus reference enzyme. These three homologs exhibited distinct apparent optimal temperatures of 30°C, 37°C, and 40°C, compared with 45°C for the reference enzyme under the tested conditions. Signal peptide replacement and GFP-based analyses suggested that native signal peptide recognition alone was unlikely to account for the five inactive homologs. Collectively, this study provides a practical bioinformatics-to-experiment strategy for screening natural enzyme diversity and prioritizing promising candidates for further biochemical characterization.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "Ames High School, 1801 Ridgewood Ave., Ames, United States",
    "Interdepartmental Microbiology Program, Iowa State University, 1071b Lebaron, 626 Morrill Rd., Ames, United States; Department of Apparel, Events, and Hospitality Management, Iowa State University, 1071b Lebaron, 626 Morrill Rd., Ames, United States; Corresponding author."
  ],
  "article_type": "brief report",
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 3,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Claire Lu"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Chloe Lu"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "Chunhui Xiang"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/06y2dfvkhdxnp.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.1016/j.btre.2026.e00985",
  "fulltext_url": "http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2215017X26000408",
  "id": "06y2dfvkhdxnp",
  "issns": [
    "2215-017X"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://doi.org/10.1016/j.btre.2026.e00985",
  "language": "en",
  "licence": "CC-BY-NC-ND",
  "licence_label": "CC BY-NC-ND",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "heading",
      "Short Communication"
    ],
    [
      "lcc",
      "TP248.13-248.65"
    ],
    [
      "openalex",
      "2502|biodegradable polymer synthesis and properties"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7221676990",
  "pdf_url": "https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13718653/pdf/?tool=EBI",
  "pmcid": "PMC13718653",
  "pmid": "42960239",
  "published": "2026-10-13",
  "publisher": "Elsevier",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/06y2dfvkhdxnp.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T13:43:44Z",
      "native_id": "beadc80b6d2c4299b55ea289c9eef5aa",
      "source": "doaj",
      "url": "https://doi.org/10.1016/j.btre.2026.e00985"
    },
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-31T00:20:38Z",
      "native_id": "PMC:PMC13718653",
      "source": "europepmc",
      "url": "https://europepmc.org/article/PMC/PMC13718653"
    },
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-11-01T00:20:52Z",
      "native_id": "MED:42960239",
      "source": "europepmc",
      "url": "https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42960239"
    },
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-11-02T12:22:38Z",
      "native_id": "PMC13718653",
      "source": "pmc",
      "url": "https://doi.org/10.1016/j.btre.2026.e00985"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "chemistry",
      "origin": "openalex:2502|biodegradable polymer synthesis and properties",
      "subfield": "materials-polymers"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Bioinformatics-guided discovery and functional verification of fungal polyester hydrolases for polycaprolactone degradation",
  "title_text": "Bioinformatics-guided discovery and functional verification of fungal polyester hydrolases for polycaprolactone degradation",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-11-02T12:22:38Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/06y2dfvkhdxnp",
  "venue": "Biotechnology Reports",
  "versions": []
}