Nutritional Applications of Keratinase Enzyme

During a series of innovative studies in the Department of Poultry Sciences at North Carolina State University (NCSU), the Principal Investigator (PI) and his colleagues isolated and identified a unique feather-degrading bacterium, Bacillus licheniformis PWD-1. Subsequent research elucidated the broad-spectrum keratinase enzyme, the gene encoding keratinase, and potential applications of keratinase in animal feed. These results form the basis for six U.S. and international patents. Scaled-up production of keratinase in a 150-liter fermentor in the NCSU Fermentation Facility was achieved. Based on these and other results, BioResource International, Inc. (BRI) was founded to serve as the exclusive licensee of the six keratinase patents from NCSU and commercialized this technology for the efficient application of heratinase to animal feed. To translate these preliminary findings into a commercially viable technology platform, it is necessary to validate and optimize the use of keratinase in animal feed. Thus, the objectives of this study are: 1) To determine the nutritional feasibility of keratinase enzyme as an additive in poultry feed, and 2) To determine the economic feasibility of formulating poultry feed with the enzyme.