title: Application of a quartz crystal microbalance to evaluate biodegradability of starch by Bacillus subtilis.
abstract: Biodegradation of solution-cast starch films by Bacillus subtilis was monitored using a quartz crystal microbalance (QCM). A starch film was formed on the crystal by solution casting and exposed to the Bacillus subtilis culture in a bioreactor. The high sensitivity of the QCM could monitor small weight changes of the starch films on the crystal in the initial stages of biodegradation by secreted exo-enzymes of the bacterium. The feasibility of this approach as a means of quantification and characterisation of biodegradability of different polymeric materials by selected organisms is discussed.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Engineering, Monash University, Clayton, Melbourne, Australia. Malcolm.Jenkins@eng.monash.edu.au
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Jenkins
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Horsfall
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Mathew
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Scanlon
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Jayasekara
authors.forename: G T
authors.initials: GT
authors.lastname: Lonergan
mesh_terms: D001412:Bacillus subtilis / Q000378:metabolism*; D001673:Biodegradation, Environmental; D019149:Bioreactors; D005240:Feasibility Studies; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D013213:Starch / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D013213:Starch