Abstract
Chicken feather is mainly keratin which is not normally degraded by common proteolytic enzymes. It is generated in large quantities as a by-product of poultry processing industry and little is known about its recycling. We reported the biodegradation of chicken feather waste (CFW) by a recombinant Bacillus subtilis strain harboring a multicopy alkaline protease (aprE) gene which acted as a keratinase. In present work, degradation of CFW was greatly enhanced by optimizing several factors. Pretreatment of CFW with NaOH or two times autoclaving enhanced the process. Cultures supplemented, separately, with 0.1% yeast extract or 0.5% corn oil enhanced the degradation of CFW. Biodegradation was optimized when the cultures contained 2% (w/v) CFW, 5% inoculum size, and incubated at 45°C for 3–4 days. Biodegradation was evaluated by monitoring soluble proteins and NH2-free amino groups that were obtained as a result of the enzymatic hydrolysis of feather. Biodegradation of feather waste using these recombinant cells represents an alternative way to improve the nutritional value of feather. Moreover, the release of soluble proteins and amino acids from feather as well as the secreted keratinase enzyme would promote several industries based on feather waste.
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