Abstract:
The tropical marine and mangrove microflora from the mid-west coast of India were found to be diverse with respect to enzymatic activities. The bacterial counts and the enzyme activities of the mangrove microflora were found to be influenced by the seasonal variations. The microflora of these ecosystems also possessed a high potential to accumulate important polymers such as polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA). Out of a total of 866 bacterial cultures isolated from this region, 337 cultures were scored positive for PHA production. Amongst these isolates, seven cultures accumulated more than 1 g of PHA per litre of culture broth. The TLC profiles of the methyl esters of PHA from the seven cultures showed varied profiles. The sediment samples also showed the presence of PHA with five different monomeric units.
