Screening of Natural Rubber-Degrading Microorganisms from Rubber Processing Factory Waste in Vietnam

Abstract

Natural rubber-degrading microorganisms were isolated from waste of rubber processing factory in Cam Thuy of Vietnam. Four of them belong to Streptomyces sp. that showed the higher abilities for natural rubber degradation than the others. They are able to use both deproteinised natural rubber (DPNR) and synthetic rubber cis-1,4-polyisoprene (SR) as a sole source of carbon. Gel permeation chromatography (GPC) analysis revealed that these strains degraded DPNR and SR to low-molecular-weight products. The growth of isolates occurs essentially on the latex glove pieces after one month of incubation in mineral salt medium. The total nitrogen contents of glove pieces were determined using Kjeldahl method, which were 10-20 times higher than that in un-inoculated sample. Moreover, the degradation was also confirmed by observing the growth of isolates on glove’s surface using scanning electron microscopy (SEM).