Utilization of banana peel for pectinase enzyme production

Banana peel, a fruit waste rich in pectin and other nutrients was utilized in the present study for production of industrially important pectinase enzyme. Banana peel powder as a sole source of carbon has been successfully exploited to grow Aspergilus niger (MTCC 281) under solid state fermentation (SSF). Effect of quantity of nutrients, pH, temperature and dilution level was studied on pectinase production. The optimization of the conditions for production of strains and enzymes is necessary for the proper use of agricultural waste and attains sustainability of the bioprocess. Maximum pectinase activity of 8.12U/ml was observed at 1:3 dilution levels, pH 5 and 3% of 10⁸ spores/ml inoculums size at 40^°C with 120 hrs of incubation time. The current study addresses the optimization of different cultural conditions for A. niger to maximize the production of pectinase with cheap and readily available banana peeling waste.