Degradation of keratin substrate by Aspergillus niger and A. flavus isolated from the soil

Solid waste management using biological methods, particularly microorganisms is widely used in many parts of the world because of their high degradation efficacy, environmentally friendly and less cost effective. In this present study, keratinase producing fungal strains were isolated from local soi...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Avinash, G. P., Namasivayam, S. Karthick Raja, Santhi, N., Subhashini, G., Fan, Wong Siew
Format: Conference Proceeding
Language:English
Subjects:
Biological effects
Degradation
Effectiveness
Fungi
Inoculum
Solid waste management
Solid wastes
Spores
Substrates
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Summary:Solid waste management using biological methods, particularly microorganisms is widely used in many parts of the world because of their high degradation efficacy, environmentally friendly and less cost effective. In this present study, keratinase producing fungal strains were isolated from local soil samples using human hair as the substrate. A total of 15 species of fungi belongs to A. flavus, A. nidulans, A. luchensis and A. terreus, Trichoderma, Penicillium citrinum, Helminthosporium, Cladosporium, Fusarium, Geotrichum, Chrysosporium and Rhizopus were isolated. Among the fungal strains, maximum enzyme production was recorded in Aspergillus niger and A. flavus which was confirmed by the drastic reduction of human hair loss. Among the various parameters tested, maximum enzyme production was observed at pH 8, temperature 40°C, inoculum size 1.0×108 spores/ml and 1.5% substrate. Further study will be helpful to utilize the fungal based keratinases as an effective, alternative and safe strategy.
ISSN:0094-243X
1551-7616
DOI:10.1063/5.0229376