Abstract
The main purpose of this study was to isolate and briefly characterize proteolytic bacteria from a poorly known habitat - raw wool. Fleece samples were accordingly collected from Merino raw wool - a Portuguese ewe breed, at three distinct areas of their body, from animals exhibiting no symptoms or signs of abnormalities; they were then subjected to enumeration and isolation of a total of 158 bacterial strains. Said isolates were screened for protease activity, using the spot technique, on Calcium Caseinate Agar containing 1% (w/v) skim milk. The 36 isolates displaying the highest protease activity underwent a more refined assessment of enzymatic performance - by examining their cell-free supernatant extracts, using casein as substrate. Two Bacillus isolates were eventually chosen owing to their highest proteolytic activities (24.6 and 15.9. U/mL), and identified using molecular biology tools.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 38-46 |
Number of pages | 9 |
Journal | Small Ruminant Research |
Volume | 109 |
Issue number | 1 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - Jan 2013 |
Keywords
- Caseinolytic activity
- Fleece
- Keratin
- Sheep
- Wool microflora