Identification and characterization of a highly chitinase-producing Paenibacillus timonensis strain LK-DZ15 isolated from Djurdjura Mountains in Kabylia, Algeria

A novel bacterial strain was isolated from the highest summit of the Djurdjura Mountains in Kabylia (Algeria) at altitudes of about 23 km. For a long time, scientists have investigated in familiar world to identify novel microbial biocatalysts. However, the mountain soil has been shown as an almost entire reserve of novel enzymes with interesting properties for industrial and environmental applications. Paenibacillus sp. as a genus of facultative anaerobic bacteria is widespread in nature. Many species of this genus produce different enzymes used in biodegradation, textiles, bakery, food industry, stationery, biopharmaceutical industries and in many other domains. Thus, the strain LKDZ15 was isolated from Tikjda, in the Djurdjura Mountains, Algeria. The identification of this newly isolated bacterium was carried out using morphological, physiological, and biochemical characteristics. In addition, the 16S rDNA gene was also amplified and sequenced. All the data obtained with regards to the physiological and biochemical properties of the isolate, confirmed that the LKDZ15 strain belonged to the Paenibacillus genus. Moreover, the nucleotide sequence and blast analyses confirmed that the LKDZ15 strain (GenBank accession no.: MK734103) was closely related to those of the Paenibacillus strains. All the results obtained strongly suggested that this new isolate should be assigned as Paenibacillus timonensis strain LKDZ15.