Utilization of feather keratin waste to antioxidant and migration-enhancer peptides by Bacillus licheniformis 8-4.

AIMS: Feathers are keratin-rich byproducts of poultry processing, but those are often frequently abandoned as garbage and thus polluting the environment. Therefore, the study focused on the efficient biodegradation, bioactivity, and high-value application of feather keratin. METHODS AND RESULTS: Feather-degrading bacteria were identified, and the degradation properties were characterized. DPPH (1,1-Diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl radical) and ABTS (2,2'-Azino-bis (3-ethylbenzthiazoline-6-sulfonic acid))radical scavenging assays, cytotoxicity assays, intracellular reactive oxygen scavenging assays, and cell migration assays were used to examine the biological activities of the feather keratin hydrolysis peptides (FKHPs). The results showed that we screened a feather-degrading strain of Bacillus licheniformis 8-4, which achieved complete degradation of 2% (w/v) feathers within 48 h. Notably, the feather fermentation broth was particularly high in FKHPs, which exhibited good DPPH and ABTS radical scavenging ability. Further studies revealed that FKHPs had both the ability to scavenge H2O2-induced ROS from HaCat cells and the ability to promote HaCat cell migration, while remaining non-toxic. CONCLUSIONS: The effective feather-degrading ability of B. licheniformis 8-4 allowed for the fermentation of feather medium to yield active peptides that were both antioxidants and cell-migration enhancers.

Preparation, Purification, and Identification of Novel Feather Keratin-Derived Peptides with Antioxidative and Xanthine Oxidase Inhibitory Activities.

Feather keratin is an underappreciated protein resource of high quality, with limited bioavailability, and it urgently requires eco-friendly methods to enhance its value. Here, we report on the preparation, purification, and identification of novel peptides with antioxidant and xanthine oxidase (XOD) inhibitory activities from fermented feather broth, using Bacillus licheniformis 8-4. Two peptides, namely, DLCRPCGPTPLA (DA-12) and ANSCNEPCVR (AR-10), displayed remarkable 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical and 2,2'-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzthiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS) radical scavenging abilities with half-maximal inhibitory concentrations (IC50) values of 0.048, 0.034, and 0.95, 0.84 mg/mL, respectively. These values exceed those of the previously reported feather keratin-derived antioxidant peptides. Another peptide, GNQQVHLQSQDM (GM-12), demonstrated XOD activity inhibition, with an IC50 value of 12.15 mg/mL, and it quenched the fluorescence of XOD. Furthermore, after simulating gastrointestinal digestion, DA-12, AR-10, and GM-12 retained their biological activities. Meanwhile, DA-12 and GM-12 showed an unexpected synergistic inhibition on XOD activity accompanied by fluorescence quenching. This study provides new insights into the potential applications of feather keratin, including functionalized feed with antioxidative and antigout (anti-hyperuricemia) activities.

A reliable method of high performance liquid chromatography coupled with inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry for determining selenoamino acids in selenoproteins from Lactococcus lactis.

A reliable method for simultaneous determination of four organic selenium species by HPLC-ICP-MS was developed and implemented in determining organic selenoamino acids (Se-AAs) in selenoproteins from Lactococcus lactis (L. lactis) NZ9000. The method consisted of liberating Se-AAs from selenoproteins using ultrasound-assisted protease hydrolysis, and quantitatively detecting Se-AA speciations by HPLC-ICP-MS. After optimizations of proteolysis conditions, chromatographic conditions and determination conditions, the established method could efficiently separate the four Se-AAs, including SeCys, SeCys2, SeMeCys and SeMet within 10 min. It presented high sensitivity with the limits of detection and quantitation in the range of 0.197∼0.240 µg∙L-1 and 0.788∼0.960 µg∙L-1, respectively, good repeatability with a relative standard deviation (RSD) of less than 5%, and good recovery in the desired floating range of 90%∼105%, verifying the good accuracy. The method successfully detected four selenium species in the purified glutathione peroxidase (LlGPx) overexpressed in L. lactis NZ9000, SeCys (0.9716∼1.6784 µg∙g-1), SeCys2 (1.0695∼1.2124 µg∙g-1), SeMeCys (0.7288∼0.7984 µg∙g-1) and SeMet (1.0058∼1.9571 µg∙g-1), accounting for up to 80.14% of total selenium. There was no difference of order of magnitude in the four Se-AAs, indirectly indicating the random incorporation of selenium into selenoprotein LlGPx in L. lactis NZ9000. This work throws new light on the identification and biosynthesis of organic selenium species in selenoproteins and selenium-riched organisms like L. lactis.