Efficient production of l-asparaginase from Bacillus licheniformis with low-glutaminase activity: Optimization, scale up and acrylamide degradation studies

► Production of l-asparaginase from Bacillus licheniformis and its statistical optimization. ► High yields of enzyme obtained i.e. 32IU/ml in 18h after statistical optimization. ► Optimized process yielded 30IU/ml of enzyme in 15h is obtained in 30L fermenter. ► l-Asparaginse produced by B. licheniformis is free of glutaminase activity. ► l-Asparaginase produced was efficiently able to degrade polyacrylamide. l-Asparaginase has potential as an anti-cancer drug and for prevention of acrylamide formation in fried and baked foods. Production of the enzyme by Bacillus licheniformis (RAM-8) was optimized by process engineering using a statistical modeling approach and a maximum yield of 32.26IU/ml was achieved. The l-asparaginase exhibited glutaminase activity of only 0.8IU/ml and would therefore be less prone to cause the side effects associated with asparaginase therapy compared to enzyme preparations with higher glutaminase activities. When production was carried out in a 30-L bioreactor, enzyme production reached 29.94IU/ml in 15h. The enzyme inhibited poly-acrylamide formation in 10% acrylamide solution and reduced acrylamide formation in fried potatoes by 80%.