Application of Lipase from Marine Bacteria Bacillus sonorensis as an Additive in Detergent Formulation

The efficacy of lipase (triacylglycerol acylhydrolases EC 3.1.1.3) as a detergent additive from a newly isolated marine halophilic bacteria Bacillus sonorensis from marine clams Paphia malabarica collected in the Kalbadevi Estuary, Mumbai, has been assessed and reported. In terms of activity and stability, the lipase exhibited maximum activity in alkaline conditions and was observed to be stable over a temperature range from room temperature to 60 °C. The activity of the lipase increased in the presence of surfactants and detergents. Due to these properties of the lipase from marine bacteria, it was used as an additive in detergents to study its efficiency at corn oil removal from fabrics. The washing studies indicated that the efficiency of corn oil removal from the cotton fabrics increased by 20 % when lipase was incorporated in the detergent as compared to the treatment with detergent alone. The lipase was also capable of removing corn oil from natural as well as synthetic fabrics dyed with a respective, preferred class of dyes.