ISOLATION AND CHARACTERIZATION OF KERATIN IN FEATHERS OF LOCAL AND EXOTIC BIRDS USING FOURIER-TRANSFORM INFRARED SPECTROSCOPY (FTIR) TECHNIQUE

Abstract

ABSTRACT

Keratin wastes are considered as environmental pollutants produced mostly from the poultry farms, slaughterhouses, and leather industries. Keratin wastes are dumped, buried, used for landfilling, or incinerated and all these actions increase the threats of environmental hazards, pollution, negatively influence the public health, and increase greenhouse gases concentration. This study aimed to isolate and characterize keratin in feathers of local and exotic birds from four slaughter houses in Kaduna north, Kaduna State. Keratin extracted from both samples was used for the characterization process using Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The result shows that the local specimen exhibits several distinctive hydrogen-bonded hydroxyl (OH) groups, including a broad and weak peak at 3201.4 cm^-1, indicating the presence of hydrogen-bonded hydroxyl (OH) groups. The analytical zone (3500 to 1500 cm^-1) of the FTIR spectrum for keratin from local turkey feathers revealed the presence of several distinct methyl groups with a peak at 3000.5 cm^-1 while the FTIR spectrum of keratin from exotic turkey feathers revealed a complex array of functional groups with a broad peak at 3227.9 cm^-1. The spectrum of keratin from local duck feathers were observed at a peak of 2851.4 cm^-1 while the spectrum of keratin from exotic duck feathers exhibited distinct features with peaks at 2847.7 cm^-1 and 1994.1 cm^-1 for methylene C-H stretches and isothiocyanate groups, respectively. The findings of this study revealed that local varieties demonstrated a lower concentration of keratin proteins of 52.3±0.73, 57.9±0.35, and 57.7±0.01 for chicken, turkey and duck feathers respectively when compared to exotic chicken, turkey and duck feathers with a higher concentration of keratin proteins of 55.7±0.00, 64.2±0.23, and 60.4±0.40 respectively which aligned with selective breeding aimed at improving feather quality for ornamental and commercial purposes. This increased concentration may enhance the mechanical and biochemical properties of the feathers, making them more suitable for various applications. The successful isolation and purification of keratin from local and exotic bird feathers confirmed that feather type influences keratin yield. This diversity in protein composition may contribute to unique mechanical properties, such as increased strength and flexibility, which are crucial for applications in textiles and biocompatible materials. Notably, the isolation and characterization process yielded keratin with a percentage purity of 96% from exotic bird feathers, compared to 89% from local bird feathers. This difference in purity may contribute to the distinct properties observed in exotic feathers.