Molecular characterization and growth optimization of halo-tolerant amylase producing bacteria isolated from salt mines of Karak, Pakistan

Microorganisms are commonly used for the production of different types of enzymes, among which amylases are extensively used for different industrial purposes like food industry, paper industry, textile industry and detergents etc. In this study, extremophilic bacteria were isolated from salt mines of Karak, Pakistan which have the ability to grow and express amylases at diverse environmental conditions. In Total, 43 out of the 53 bacteria were found positive for amylase production. Furthermore, microscopic, biochemical and phylogenetic analysis inferred from 16S rRNA gene sequencing identified that amylase producing strain SBA-5 belong to Bacillus subtilis. The strain SBA-5 identified as Bacillus subtilis exhibited high amylaseproduction at pH 9 and temperature 37°C. The present study revealed that the salt mines of Karak have high population of halotolerant microorganism feasible for use under diverse environmental conditions, which can be of great importance for various bio-industrial applications. Keywords: Amylase producing bacteria; Protein purification; Salt mines of Karak http://dx.doi.org/10.19045/bspab.2017.60038