Isolation of Extracellular Proteins from Ophiostoma ulmi and their Effect on Tensile Properties of Thermoplastic Starch

• Main Author: Khan, Sadia
• Other Authors: Christendat, Dinesh
• Language: en_ca
• Published: 2010
• Subjects: role of extracellular fungal proteins in bioplastic development; 0306; 0307; 0775; 0794; 0795
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/1807/27310

Starch-derived bioplastics are an inexpensive, renewable and environmentally-friendly alternative to traditional petroleum-based plastics. Proteins secreted by Ophiostoma ulmi, were investigated for their application in bioplastic product. Proteins were isolated from fungal cultures by anion exchange chromatography and used to treat starch. Subsequently, plastic films were generated by solution casting, with glycerol as plasticizer. Tensile strength of the films was found to increase significantly compared to the control. The relative water holding capacity of the treated starch also decreased dramatically. Attempts to identify fungal proteins by MALDI-TOF MS/MS did not result in positive matches, mainly due to lack of fungal sequence information. Additionally, the effect of non-specific proteins resulted in a modest increase in tensile strength and a slightly greater effect on water absorption. Proteins secreted by O. ulmi were therefore implicated in improving properties of starch-based plastics. Investigation into the role of an extracellular polysaccharide is also suggested.