Öz
The production of extracellular α-amylase (1,4-α-D-glucan glucanohydrolase, EC 3.2.1.1) by a newly isolated
thermophilic bacterium Anoxybacillus sp. was studied in solid state fermentation (SSF). Bacterial strain
was isolated from a thermal spring of Ömer, Afyonkarahisar in Turkey. Agricultural wastes such as banana
husk, wheat bran, rice husk, apple bark, orange bark, maize oil cake, lentil bran and pistachio shell were used
for α-amylase production as solid substrates. Growth on rice husk gave the highest α-amylase activity. The
maximum enzyme activity obtained was 3.628 U/mg of under optimum conditions of an fermentation time of
48 h, an incubation temperature of 60°C, a pH of 6.0, a substrat particle size 1.500 µm, an initial moisture level
of 60% and an inoculum level of 40% (v/w).