Abstract
Keratins are everywhere, from being the major components of household dust to common contaminants of laboratory protein analysis. Keratin is the major structural fibrous protein belonging to the large family of structural proteins to form hair, wool, feathers, nails, and horns of many kinds of animals and has a high concentration of cysteine, 7–20% of the total amino acid residues, that form inter- and intramolecular disulfide bonds. Keratin wastes are considered as the environmental pollutants and produced mostly from the poultry farms, slaughterhouses, and leather industries. Keratin wastes are dumped, buried, used for landfilling, or incinerated and all these actions increase the threats of environmental hazards, pollution, negatively influence the public health, and increase greenhouse gases concentration. Nature has provided planet Earth with a variety of beneficial organisms. Soil is considered as a well-known source for the growth of keratinophilic microflora (fungi and bacteria), which have the capability to degrade the keratin waste. The keratin-degradation ability of keratinophilic microflora has been credited with the production of the microbial keratinase enzyme and biodegradation takes place (enzymatic degradation). So, the keratin wastes are the biodegradable polymers. Keratinase is the industrially significant enzyme that offers bioconversion of keratin waste, utilization as animal feed supplements, and dehairing agents in tannery industries and textile industries.
Highlights
Keratin wastes are considered as the environmental pollutants and generated mostly from the poultry farms, slaughterhouses and leather industries [1, 2]
Keratin protein is the major component of the keratin waste [7] and belongs to the scleroprotein group [8]
Keratin solid waste generated from meat, poultry processing, fish industries, wool industries considered as harmful environmental pollutants [74, 75]
Summary
Keratin wastes are considered as the environmental pollutants and generated mostly from the poultry farms, slaughterhouses and leather industries [1, 2]. The poultry feathers and other keratin-containing waste is dumped, land filled and incinerated throughout the world [10, 11]. These activities cause soil, water and air pollution. Biological degradation of keratin waste is more efficient than the physical and chemical degradation, yielding more useful by-product which can be utilized in commercial applications. In this scenario, biological keratin waste degradation has received the consideration from the scientific research community in recent days [16, 17]
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