Jin-Ha Jeong

Influence of glycerol on production and structural-physical properties of cellulose from Acetobacter sp. V6 cultured in shake flasks.

Cost-effective production of bacterial cellulose (BC) by Acetobacter sp. V6 was investigated in shake culture using glycerol as carbon source and its structural and physical properties were determined. In medium containing 3% (w/v) glycerol, BC production was 4.98+/-0.03g/l after 7 days. This value was 3.8-fold higher than the yield in the glucose medium. FT-IR spectra revealed that all the BC samples were highly crystalline and were cellulose type capital I, Ukrainian. The crystallinity index value of the BC produced was 9% higher in the glycerol medium than in the glucose medium. Scanning electron micrographs showed that BC from the glycerol medium was more compact than that from the glucose medium. Water-holding capacity and viscosity of BC from the glycerol medium had 61.3% and 22.4% lower values than those from the glucose medium. These results suggest that glycerol could be a potential low-cost substrate for BC production by Acetobacter sp. V6, leading to the reduction in the production cost.

Isolation and Characterization of Lactic Acid Bacteria with Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme Inhibitory and Antioxidative Activities

In this study, we isolated and characterized plant-associated lactic acid bacteria which are able to produce angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitory and antioxidative activities. Five lactic acid bacteria were isolated from plants (grape and leek), a plant-associated fermentative product (Kimchi) and Korean traditional alcohol (Dongdongju). Strains K-1 and K-21 from Kimchi, strain L-5 from leek, strain G-3 from grape, and strain D-3 from Dongdongju were identified as Pediococcus pentosaceus, Lactobacillus plantarum, Weissella cibaria, L. plantarum, and L. brevis, respectively, by 16S rRNA gene analysis. ACE inhibitory activities of isolated strains ranged from 44.3 to 71.9% in the MRS broth. G-3, L-5 and K-1 strains especially showed high ACE inhibitory activities (59.8-98.69%) in the MRS broth containing skim milk. DPPH radical scavenging activities of the strains were in the range of 42.5-82.7%. All strains showed varying levels of resistance in artificial gastric fluid (pH 2.5), retaining viability ranging from 42.2 to 88.1% after 3 hr of incubation. All strains showed high resistance to 0.3% oxgall after 24 hr of incubation; survival rates were in the range of 55.4-112.8%. Isolated strains were found to be antagonistic to some pathogens including Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

Isolation and Characterization of Duck Feather-Degrading Microorganism for Treatment of Recalcitrant Keratinous Waste

We isolated and characterized novel duck feather-degrading bacteria producing keratinase. Twelve strains were isolated from soil and faces at poultry farm, and decayed feathers. They were identified as Bacillus methylotrophicus, Pseudomonas geniculata, Pseudomonas hibiscicola, Exiquobacterium profundum, Bacillus pumilus, Bacillus amyloliquefaciens, Chryseobacterium indologenes, Bacillus thuringiensis, Thermomonas koreensis, respectively, by phenotypic characters and 16S rRNA gene analysis. Generally, the level of keratinase production was not proportional to feather degradation rate. The highest keratinolytic activity was observed in the culture inoculated with Chryseobacterium indologenes D27. Although all strains did not degrade human hair, strains tested effectively degraded chicken feather(53.8-91.4%), wool(40.4-93.0%) and human nail (51.0-82.9%). These results suggest that strains isolated could be not only used to improve the nutritional value of recalcitrant feather waste but also is a potential candidate for biotechnological processes of keratin hydrolysis.

Isolation and Characterization of Feather Keratin-Degrading Bacteria and Plant Growth-Promoting Activity of Feather Hydrolysate

Abstract This study was conducted to isolate and characterize a novel feather-degrading bacterium producing keratinase activity. A strain K9 was isolated from soil at poultry farm and identified as Xanthomonas sp. K9 by phenotypic characters and 16S rRNA gene analysis. The cultural conditions for the keratinase production were 0.3% fructose, 0.1% gelatin, 0.04% K 2 HPO 4 , 0.06% KH 2 PO 4 , 0.05% NaCl and 0.01% FeSO 4 with an initial pH 8.0 at 30 ℃ and 200 rpm. In an optimized medium containing 0.1% chicken feather, production yield of keratinase was approximately 8-fold higher than the yield in basal medium. The strain K9 effectively degraded chicken feather meal (67%) and duck feather (54%), whereas human nail and human hair showed relatively low degradation rates (13-22%). Total free amino acid concentration in the cell-free supernatant was about 25.799 mg/l. Feather hydrolysate produced by the strain K9 stimulated growth of red pepper, indicating Xanthomonas sp. K9 could be not only used to increase the nutritional value of chicken feather but also a potential candidate for the development of natural fertilizer applicable to crop plant soil. Key Words :Feather, Fertilizer, Keratin, Keratinase

Pretreatment of Cane Molasses for Production of Bacterial Cellulose and Its Physico-Chemical Properties

The aim of this study is to investigate cane molasses pretreatments for the production of cellulose by Acetobacter sp. V6, which has excellent bacterial cellulose (BC) producing capacity in the shaking culture. Among pretreatments of cane molasses, 1% (w/v) tricalcium phosphate (TP) treatment was more efficient in BC production. The physico-chemical properties of BCs that were produced in static and shaking cultures were also investigated. Although BC had an emulsifying ability, its emulsion stability was low. Water holding capacity (WHC) of BC was high; the WHC of BC produced in static culture was 14 times higher than that of α-cellulose. In addition, the viscosity of BC was higher than that of α-cellulose. Composition analysis by FT-IR showed no difference in composition between BC and plant cellulose. In the crystallinity analysis by XRD, all BC samples showed crystallinity. All BC samples showed reticulated structures consisting of ultrafine cellulose fibriles. Microfibriles of cellulose from static culture were especially more compact than those of cellulose from shaking culture.

Availability of Chicken Feather for Removal of Hexavalent Chromium and Oil

Abstract We investigated usefulness of chicken feather as bioadsorbent for removal of hexavalent chromium[Cr( Ⅵ )] and oil from aqueous solution. Chicken feather was chemically treated with DTPA, EDTA, NaOH and SDS, respectively. Among them, EDTA was the most effective in adsorbing Cr( Ⅵ ). Cr( Ⅵ ) uptake by chicken feather was increased with decreasing pH; the highest Cr( Ⅵ ) uptake was observed at pH 2.0. By increasing Cr( Ⅵ ) concentration, Cr( Ⅵ ) uptake was increased, and maximum Cr( Ⅵ ) uptake was 0.34 mmol/g. Cr( Ⅵ ) adsorption by chicken feather was well described by Freundlich isotherm than Langmuir isotherm and Freundlich constant(1/ n ) was 0.476. As the concentration of chicken feather was increased, Cr( Ⅵ ) removal efficiency was increased but Cr( Ⅵ ) uptake was decreased. Most of Cr( Ⅵ ) was adsorbed at early reaction stage(1 h) and adsorption equilibrium was established at 5 h. On the other hand, chicken feather adsorbed effectively oils including bunker-A and bunker-C. In conclusion, our results suggest that chicken feather waste could be used to remove heavy metal and oil; it is a potential candidate for biosorption material.

Antimicrobial Activity and Coloration of Environment-Friendly Biopolymer, Bacterial Cellulose

Abstract In order to develop bacterial cellulose (BC) with antimicrobial activity against pathogenic microorganisms, silver and chitosan were incorporated into BC, respectively. Experiment results showed that antimicrobial activity against pathogenic microorganisms was improved with increasing silver concentration. Chitosan also showed a direct proportion between its concentration and antimicrobial activity. These results suggest that antimicrobial effects of BC using silver and chitosan are well proven to be effective. We also tested the stainability of BC with natural colorant for the application of food industry. Stainability of BC was enhanced with increasing natural colorant concentration. Decolorization of BC stained was observed by dipping it into distilled water with one hour-intervals. As a result, there was no significant difference. Combination of natural colorant-stainability and antibiosis of BC is expected to be useful in making colored antibiotic BC in various industrial application areas, considering its antimicrobial activity, high stainability and low decolorization tendency.

Biosynthesis and Control of Keratinase in Recalcitrant Feather-Degrading Bacillus megaterium F7-1

This study was performed to investigate the nutritional conditions controlling keratinase activity in Bacillus megaterium F7-1. B. megaterium F7-1 produced keratinase using chicken feather as a sole source of carbon, nitrogen and sulfur. Addition of the feather medium with glucose enhanced keratinase production (68.9 U/ml), compared to control without glucose (63.2 U/ml). The synthesis of keratinase was repressed by addition of in B. megaterium F7-1. The highest keratinase production (70.9 U/ml) was obtained with the feather medium containing glucose and . Keratinase was produced in the absence of feather (4.9 U/ml), indicating its constitutive synthesis. Feather degradation resulted in free SH group formation. B. megaterium F7-1 effectively degraded chicken feather meal (86%), whereas duck feather, human nail, human hair and sheep wool displayed relatively low degradation rates (8-34%).