Screening and production of arylsulfatases for target therapy with etoposide 4'-sulfate, an antitumor prodrug.

Two arylsulfatase-producing streptomycetes that desulfated etoposide 4'-sulfate were isolated from soil samples. Taxonomical study identified one soil isolate as Streptomyces griseorubiginosus S980-14 (Es-1 arylsulfatase producer), while the other was considered new and tentatively designated Streptomyces sp. T109-3 (Es-2 arylsulfatase producer). Both strains produced extracellular arylsulfatase activities, provided that cultivation media were prepared with distilled water. Unlike the two known types of arylsulfatases, which had significant activity on p-nitrophenyl sulfate but none on etoposide 4'-sulfate, the crude streptomycete arylsulfatases efficiently desulfated etoposide 4'-sulfate and p-nitrophenyl sulfate, which supports the establishment of a new type of arylsulfatases.