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Appl. Environ. Microbiol., Nov 1996, 4273-4275, Vol 62, No. 11
Copyright © 1996, American Society for Microbiology

Hydrolysis of Feather Keratin by Immobilized Keratinase

X Lin, JCH Shih and HE Swaisgood
Departments of Poultry Science and Food Science, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina 27695-7608

Keratinase isolated from Bacillus licheniformis PWD-1 was immobilized on controlled-pore glass beads. The immobilized keratinase demonstrated proteolytic activities against both insoluble feather keratin and soluble casein. It also displayed a higher level of heat stability and an increased tolerance toward acidic pHs compared with the free keratinase. During a continuous reaction at 50(deg)C, the immobilized keratinase retained 40% of the original enzyme activity after 7 days. The immobilized keratinase exhibits improved stability, thereby increasing its potential for use in numerous applications.