DOI: 10.36347/sajb.2014.v02i08.002

Pages: 479-485

Laccases are multicopper-containing oxidases (EC 1.10.3.2.) and they are widely found in fungi, higher plants and bacteria. Because of their high pH stability and thermostability, laccases from this strain have a potential for the treatment of textile bleaching effluents. In this research, the thermophilic test strain isolated from the Manikaran thermal springs, in Himachal Pradesh, were subjected to analysis of 16S rRNA sequence. The obtained sequence data were compared with data from the database in the Genbank and as a result it has been identified that this organism is a member of Geobacillus genus (GenBank number KC515152). The laccase from Geobacillus thermocatenulatus MS5 was purified by using precipitate of saturation (NH4)2SO4, DEAE-cellulose and Sephacryl S200 and the molecular mass of the enzyme were determined by SDS-PAGE. It has been depicted that purified laccase enzyme preparations can degrade textile dyes successfully, playing a significant role in the bioremediation of synthetic dyes, thus can be used further for bioremediation of industrial effluents.