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Feather waste, generated in large quantities as a byproduct of commercial poultry processing, is almost pure keratin, which is not easily degradable by common proteolytic enzymes. Several feather-degrading bacterial isolates were isolated from feather waste and soil. These isolates were able to degrade chicken feather, when grown on basal medium containing 1.0% native feather as a source of energy, carbon, and nitrogen. The isolates were characterized according to morphological characteristics and biochemical tests, and Vitek and API kit system. belonging to the Acinetobacter calcoaceticus complex, Bacillus thuringiensis, Bacillus circulans, Bacillus cereus. It was observed that aerobic growth by the isolate on single whole chicken feather, resulted in complete degradation of the keratin protein after 5-6 days of incubation at 37℃. The production of protein by the organism was decreased with cultivation time, with the maximum activity coinciding with the start of the stationary phase. The kerationolytic activity increased with cultivation time.
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