Bahareh Behfar, Fatemeh Haddadi, Mohammad Reza Sharifmoghadam, Hossein Kamaladini, Masoumeh Bahreini, Azadeh Niknejad,
Volume 20, Issue 1 (1-2026)
Abstract
Introduction: The poultry industry produces a large amount of waste, including chicken feathers, which are difficult to decompose and can cause environmental pollution. Keratinase enzymes, which can break down keratin, have the potential to be used in bioremediation of poultry waste. The objectives of this study were to screen for keratinolytic isolates from poultry waste, Identify the isolates using morphological, biochemical, and molecular methods; optimize the culture medium conditions for keratinase production and measure the keratinase activity of the isolates.
Materials and Methods: Two keratinolytic isolates were screened from poultry waste around Mashhad in Iran. The isolates were identified using morphological, biochemical, and molecular methods. The culture medium conditions for the two strains were optimized to enhance keratinase production. The keratinase activity was measured using azokeratin substrate and turbidity absorbance.
Results: The two isolates were identified as Bacillus pumilus and Bacillus teqlensis. The optimized culture medium conditions for keratinase production were pH 7.0, temperature 37°C, and incubation time 48 hours. The maximum keratinase activity of the two isolates was 120 U/mL and 100 U/mL, respectively.
Conclusions: The two Bacillus isolates have the potential to be used in bioremediation of poultry waste. The optimized culture medium conditions can be used for large-scale production of keratinase enzymes.
The keratinase enzymes produced by the two Bacillus isolates have the potential to be used in a variety of applications, including bioremediation of poultry waste, production of animal feed, and development of new cleaning products.
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