Hydrolysis of raw hide using proteolytic enzyme extracted from papaya latex

Crude proteolytic enzyme was extracted from papaya latex using two solvents, water and phosphate buffer pH 6. The yield of extracted enzyme using water as a solvent was similar to that using phosphate buffer. Following the solvent extraction, the extracted enzyme was precipitated in 45 wt% saturated ammonium sulfate solution. The yield and activity of precipitated enzyme considerably decreased. Crude proteolytic enzyme extracted using water as an extracting liquid was, therefore, selected to use in gelatin production from raw hide hydrolysis, comparing to the use of commercial papain. The effects of hydrolysis conditions on gelatin recovery and properties of obtained gelatin were investigated. The optimum conditions for the activities of both crude extracted enzyme and commercial papain were at 75 °C and pH 7. At this condition, the highest percentages of gelatin recovery were obtained from raw hide hydrolysis reactions. The gelatin recovery and gel strength of gelatin obtained from crude extracted enzyme and commercial papain hydrolysis were similar. This proved that crude extracted enzyme from papaya latex could be effectively used in gelatin production, instead of the use of commercial papain, with a comparatively low cost.