Purification, characterization and application of bromelain from Ananas comosus

Bromelain is a major protease, isolated from pineapple (Ananas comosus). Bromelain is accumulated in the entire plant to a different extent and properties depending on its source. In the present study, Bromelain was extracted from all parts of pineapple using sodium citrate buffer. Bromelain was filtered, centrifuged and used for further studies. After the determination of protease activity and protein content, the Core and Pulp extract of A.comosus was chosen using gelatin as the substrate. The Bromelain was purified by precipitation and dialysis. Then SDS-PAGE was performed in order to determine the molecular size of the obtained protein. Then the effectiveness of Bromelain as an anti-browning agent, extracted and purified from pineapple Core and Pulp was determined. The study showed that Bromelain is a better anti-browning agent when compared with some of the available commercial anti-browning agents. Further, the application of Bromelain was tested by stain removal, compared to the positive control, the ability of stain-removing property for the produced enzyme was observed to be good. Immobilized Bromelain prepared using calcium alginate beads and its stability and characters were noted.