Improved industrial enzymes in unlimited quantity |
|---|
cellulases can be added to detergents. Most cellulases, however, function best at an acidic pH, while detergents operate best at high alkaline pH. For improved washing performance an alkaline cellulase which does not degrade intact fibres was needed. Such an enzyme could be identified in a highly alkali-tolerant bacterium, Bacillus BCE103, which was found in an alkaline lake in the East African Rift Valley. Unfortunately, this bacterium grows and performs poorly under industrial fermentation conditions. The company Genencor International therefore expressed the gene coding for this enzyme in an established industrial production organism, Bacillus subtilis. The enzyme is now produced in large quantities, allowing affordable use in detergent compositions.