Isolation and Identification of asparaginase-producing bacteria from potato processing wastewater

L-asparaginase is an enzyme which hydrolyze the amino acid asparagine into aspartic acid and ammonia. L-asparaginase used for leukemia and lymphoma treatment is produced mainly from bacteria such as Escherichia coli and Erwinia chrysanthemi and search continues to find new sources for this enzyme. In this study, isolation of bacteria producing L-asparaginase from wastewater of potato processing was performed.The wastewater containing all the soluble compounds in potato juice, such as significant amounts of asparagine amino acids. Bacterial isolation and screening were performed on nitrogen agar and M9 media. Two isolates, called PW4 and PW5, were able to produce ammonium in the M9 medium. The results of molecular identification and biochemical tests showed that these isolates belong to the genus Escherichia and Enterococcus, respectively. Quantitative and qualitative measurements of the enzyme production of these isolates were carried out in different conditions. The highest enzyme activity of 10 IUml-1 was seen in PW4 isolate growth in the in a medium containing glutamine. The maximum amount of enzyme activity of PW5 isolate, 2.33IUml-1 was observed as a result of bacterial culture in a culture medium containing asparagine. The enzymes produced by both isolates did not show glutaminase activity. The maximum activity of the enzyme produced by PW4 isolate was evaluated at 37 ° C and enzyme activity decreased at lower and higher temperatures. These results suggest that this enzyme has a potential to be further studies for use in drug design .