Investigating recombinant manganese-catalases from Geobacillus thermopakistaniensis for sustainable and eco-friendly textile processing

Catalases are hydroperoxidases with numerous industrial applications. In textile industry, these enzymes efficiently remove hydrogen peroxide residues from bleached cotton fabrics. The commercial catalases used in the textile industry are either heme-catalases or catalase-peroxidases, which are thermolabile. Thermostable manganese-catalases represent a promising, yet unexplored alternative for this purpose. The present study explores the potential of three manganese-catalases (Cat_Gt, Cat-II_Gt, Cat_Gt-ΔC) from Geobacillus thermopakistaniensis for bleach clean-up process. These enzymes demonstrated superior performance to the commercial enzymes. Notably, Cat-II_Gt emerged as the most effective, offering significant advantages due to its high activity, thermostability, and alkaline nature. This enzyme can be directly added to the bleach bath, thereby reducing water consumption without compromising subsequent processes. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on applications of manganese-catalases, a less explored class, in the textile industry.