Amylolytic activity of bacterial strains isolated from sago pulp of the traditional sago industry in Palopo, South Sulawesi

Sago is a plant widely cultivated in Indonesia with a planting area of 1.128 million ha. Sago waste, especially sago pulp, has enough starch so that it can be used as a substrate for amylolytic bacteria. Amylase enzymes produced by bacteria have the potential to be applied in the industrial sector, food, medicine, and also used to recycle waste. This study aimed to obtain amylolytic bacteria isolated from the sago pulp industry in Palopo, South Sulawesi and observe the amylase activity of these bacteria. Amylolytic bacteria were isolated from sago pulp using selective media. The pure isolate was then filtered and the ability to produce the amylase enzyme was observed. Nine amylolytic bacterial isolates were filtered based on qualitative tests. Four bacterial isolates, 2B, 2D, 1C, and 4A showed high amylolytic index, 9.00 mm, 7.28 mm, 5.75 mm, and 4.67 mm, respectively. The highest amylase activity based on quantitative tests was shown by isolates 2B (3.62 units/mL). Based on the results of the study, it was shown that the bacteria isolated from sago pulp have good potential to produce amylase