Screening for lipase activity from MD 018 bacteria isolated from coral mucus

Abstract

The study of lipase enzyme has received vast attention because of its significance for efficient bioconversion of lipase residues into useful products in industries. At the moment, there are very few studies focusing on lipid-degrading enzymatic activities of marine bacteria. In this study, the ability to produce this enzyme by marine bacteria MDO 18, which was isolated from the mucus of Aeropora cervicornis coral at Bi dong Island, Terengganu was investigated was confirmed the identification of the bacteria by several biochemical tests based on their morphological and phenotypic characteristics were carried out. The results suggested that the bacteria is Citrobacter sp. Three different inedia have been tested to determine the best culture medium for induction: Nutrient Broth in distilled water; Nutrient Broth in sea water and ZoBell's Modified Broth medium. ZoBell's Modified Broth medium was found to promote the highest bacterial growth. The induction of lipase was carried out using olive oil as substrate. Several reaction parameters on lipase activity such as incubation time, temperature and amount of substrate were investigated.