BIODEGRADATION OF POLYMERS AT TEMPERATURES UP TO 130-DEGREES-C

Extreme thermophilic and hyperthermophilic microorganisms are those wh ich are adapted to grow at temperatures from 70 to 110 degrees C. Most of these exotic microorganisms are heterotrophic and are capable of a ttacking various polymeric substrates such as starch, hemicellulose, a nd proteins. Only recently, a number of novel extracellular enzymes li ke alpha-amylase, pullulanase, xylanase, and proteinase have been puri fied and studied in detail. By applying gene technology it was also po ssible to purify heat-stable enzymes after expression of their genes i n mesophilic hosts. These novel enzymes are in general characterized b y temperature optima around 90-105 degrees C and a high degree of ther mostability. Enzymic activity is still detectable even at 130 degrees C and in the presence of detergents. Due to the remarkable properties of these enzymes, they are also of interest for biotechnological appli cations.