Improved thermostable α-amylase activity of Bacillus amyloliquefaciens by low-energy ion implantation

Thermostable α-amylase is of great importance in the starch fermentation industry; it is extensively used in the manufacture of beverages, baby foods, medicines, and pharmaceuticals. Bacillus amyloliquefaciens produces thermostable α-amylase; however, production of thermostable α-amylase is limited. Ion-beam implantation is an effective method for mutation breeding in microbes. We conducted ion-beam implantation experiments using two different ions, Ar(+) and N(+), to determine the survival rate of and dose effect on a high α-amylase activity strain of B. amyloliquefaciens that had been isolated from soil samples. N(+) implantation resulted in a higher survival rate than Ar(+) implantation. The optimum implantation dose was 2.08 × 10(15) ions/cm(2). Under this implantation condition, we obtained a thermally and genetically stable mutant α-amylase strain (RL-1) with high enzyme activity for degrading α-amylase. Compared to the parental strain (RL), the RL-1 strain had a 57.1% increase in α-amylase activity. We conclude that ion implantation in B. amyloliquefaciens can produce strains with increased production of thermostable α-amylase.