1Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology, Biological Sciences Institute, São Paulo State University-Unesp, São Paulo, Brazil
2Department of Biochemistry and Chemical Technology, Institute of Chemistry, São Paulo State University-Unesp, São Paulo, Brazil
*For correspondence - jconti@rc.unesp.br
Feather-degrading microorganisms were isolated from a poultry processing industry. The microorganism that presented high degradation of feathers was LM16, reaching 97.7% after 72 h of fermentation. Using morphological and biochemical tests [API 20 E (Bio-Merieux)], the strain was identified as Bacillus amyloliquefaciens. The keratinase production and cell growth were affected by culture conditions. The optimal conditions for enzyme production were 40ºC, 150 rpm, 1% of feather and pH 7.5, resulting in an activity of 187.5 U/mL. The results reveal that the release of amino acids, as evidenced through thin-layer chromatography, in the broth of the Bacillus amyloliquefacines culture can allow its use in animal feed industries (meal feather).
Bacillus amyloliquefaciens, feathers degradation, keratinase, keratin, fermentation,
