SCREENING AND ISOLATION OF THERMOSTABLE α-AMYLASE PRODUCING BACTERIA AND OPTIMIZATION OF PHYSICO-CHEMICAL PARAMETERS FOR INCREASING THE YIELD B.Lalitha kumari*, Chattu.V.Sesha.SaiRam,

Amylolytic enzymes are most important in the biotechnology industries which are highly applied in food, fermentation, textile and paper industry. The enzyme is also used in starch liquefaction, brewing, pharmaceuticals, detergents, drugs, toxic waste removal and in oil drilling (Ajay & Fagade, 2003). In the present study isolation of a bacterial strain from soil samples was done and it's physiological and biochemical features were determined. Their amylolytic activities under different physiological conditions were also investigated. Cultural conditions like temperature, pH, and volume of medium, incubation period and size of inoculum for enzyme production by the isolate were optimized. Scanning electron microscopic studies confirmed the morphology of the bacterium. Purity, sequencing and amplification of 16S rRNA was also determined. Present bacterium Bacillus subtilis yielded maximum enzyme at pH 7 and at 37°C. The isolate exhibited higher amylase activity in the presence of organic nitrogen source and then inorganic nitrogen source.