Biochemical characterization of xylanase produced from Streptomyces sp. CS624 using an agro residue substrate

•A xylanase was produced from a Streptomyces strain using wheat bran as a substrate.•The 40kDa xylanase was stable in the pH range 4.5–10 and at temperatures below 50°C.•HPLC analysis showed its potential application in xylooligosaccharide production. An extracellular and cellulase-free xylanase (EX624) was produced by Streptomyces sp. CS624 using an agricultural residue (wheat bran) as a growth substrate. EX624 was purified from culture supernatant using ammonium sulfate precipitation, ion exchange and gel filtration chromatography. The SDS-PAGE and the zymogram analysis of the purified xylanase indicated molecular mass of 40kDa. Biochemical characterization of the purified EX624 revealed its highest activity at a temperature of 60°C and pH 6.0. The xylanase was adequately stable in the pH range 4.5–10.0 and at temperatures ≤50°C. EX624 displayed enhanced activity in the presence of several metal ions including Fe2+, Co2+ and Ca2+. HPLC results showed that EX624 was not only able to hydrolyze commercially available pure beechwood xylan to xylose, xylobiose and xylotriose, but also abundantly available lignocellulosic agricultural residues in nature such as wheat bran to xylooligosaccharides.