Abstract
Introduction and Aim: Apis florea commonly known as “dwarf honey bee” harbors enormous gut bacteria that can digest complex carbohydrates and other food components. In this regard, the present investigation was focused on analyzing the polysaccharide degrading ability of bacteria isolated from the gut of honeybee, for their possible application in nutraceutical and pharmaceutical industries. Materials and Methods: Nine bacterial isolates were screened for carbohydrate degrading enzymes viz., amylase, pectinase, cellulase, tannase and laccase, using respective substrate by plate assay method. Further activities of amylase and pectinase were measured quantitatively by dinitrosalicylic acid (DNS) method. Results: All the nine selected isolates exhibited amylase and pectinase activities. However, only two isolates exhibited lignolytic and cellulolytic activity. None of the isolates showed tannin degradation. Maximum amylase activity (4.95 U/mg) was observed in Bacillus halotolerans af-M9 followed by Klebsiella oxytoca af-G4 (4.62 U/mg). With respect to pectinase activity Klebsiella pneumoniae af-E17 displayed higher activity (0.24 U/mg) followed by Klebsiella oxytoca af-G4 (0.20 U/mg). Conclusion: Habitat-specific innovations are being explored for novel compounds for therapeutic applications. This study throws a light on selection of carbohydrate degrading bacteria from a new source i.e., GUT of honeybee.
Highlights
Introduction and AimApis florea commonly known as “dwarf honey bee” harbors enormous gut bacteria that can digest complex carbohydrates and other food components
This study throws a light on selection of carbohydrate degrading bacteria from a new source i.e., GUT of honeybee
We report on the screening carried out on nine bacterial isolates to assess their ability to produce five extracellular enzyme activities
Summary
Apis florea commonly known as “dwarf honey bee” harbors enormous gut bacteria that can digest complex carbohydrates and other food components. In this regard, the present investigation was focused on analyzing the polysaccharide degrading ability of bacteria isolated from the gut of honeybee, for their possible application in nutraceutical and pharmaceutical industries. The insect guts are a rich source of novel compounds employed in pharmaceutical, food, fine chemicals, and enzyme industries. Gut bacteria perform a wide range of actions that have crucial implications for the host metabolism and overall health. Insect diets are rich in plant polysaccharides, but generally lack the enzymes to metabolize these substrates. Many rely on gut bacteria that can metabolize these polysaccharides. Honey bees have the similar process for polysaccharide digestion [3]
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