Pedobacter sp.3.14.7 a keratinolytic bacteria that produces a feather protein hydrolysate with high antioxidant activity

BEZUS BRENDA; RUSCASSO FLORENCIA; GARMENDIA GABRIELA; VERO SILVANA; CURUTCHET GUSTAVO; CAVALITTO SEBASTIÁN; CAVELLO IVANA

Obregón

Simposio; Sixth International Symposium on Environmental Biotechnology and Engineering; 2018

Animal wastes generated in the meat industry contain considerable hard-to-degrade waste, as bones, organs and hard tissues. These wastes are often rich sources of protein, so they can be revalorized to be used as feed or functional ingredients. The large amount of feather waste generated each year by commercial poultry plants creates a serious environmental problem. Currently, some industries produce feather meal from waste feathers by steam pressure cooking, which require high-energy input and the resulted feather meal is deficient in some aminoacids, limiting its use in animal feed. Nutritional enhancement of feathers can be achieved by hydrolysis with feather-degrading microorganisms. Hydrolysis of keratinous wastes by microorganisms possessing keratinolytic activity represents an attractive method for their efficient bioconversion and improving their nutritional value. The objective of this study was to investigate the capability of Pedobacter sp. 3.14.7 a novel Antarctic keratinolytic bacterium- to produce a feather protein hydrolysate (FPH) with high antioxidant activity. The antioxidant potential of FPH was evaluated using in vitro antioxidant assays, such as (ABTS) radical scavenging activity and reducing power. The strain showed the ability to degrade raw feather to FPH under optimal conditions of 30 g.l-1 chicken feathers, pH 6.0, 20ºC. At these conditions, quenching of the ABTS radical by FPH reached approximately 90%, with an IC50 value of 0.7±0.01 g l-1. Reducing power of the FPH demonstrated to be concentration dependent. The results indicate that FPH may be useful as supplementary protein and antioxidants in animal feed formulations.