Studies on chitinase productivity by some marine fungal isolates

Abstract

Marine organisms were known as rich sources for various enzymes with specific characters and other metabolites. This study was conducted to investigate the production of the economically significant chitinase from a marine fungus and to improve the production process by optimization of the fermentation medium and immobilization into a support material. The organism was identified by molecular 18s technique as Penicillium chrysogenum. The isolate was chitinase producers (331.8 U/mL) and the result was confirmed by TLC and HPLC. The enzyme was precipitated with 30% acetone and immobilized in the modified bentonite.