American Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology 2018; 5(2): 29-36 http://www.aascit.org/journal/ajmb ISSN: 2375-3005 Lipase Production from Palm Oil Mill Effluent Using Altered Fungal Isolate Through Chemical Mutagenesis Cyprian Erumiseli Oshoma 1, * , Elvis Eseosa Osawaru 2 , Osayi Brenda Isichei-Ukah 1 , Henry Uzo Oshilonyah 3 1 Department of Microbiology, University of Benin, Benin City, Nigeria 2 Biochemistry Division, Nigerian Institute for Oil Palm Research, Benin City, Nigeria 3 Department of Medical Microbiology, Central Hospital Laboratory, Agbor, Nigeria Email address * Corresponding author Citation Cyprian Erumiseli Oshoma, Elvis Eseosa Osawaru, Osayi Brenda Isichei-Ukah, Henry Uzo Oshilonyah. Lipase Production from Palm Oil Mill Effluent Using Altered Fungal Isolate Through Chemical Mutagenesis. American Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology. Vol. 5, No. 2, 2018, pp. 29-36. Received: June 10, 2018; Accepted: June 27, 2018; Published: August 2, 2018 Abstract: Lipases of microbial origin represent the most widely used class of enzymes in biotechnology. This study was aimed at production of lipase by using chemically altered strains of Aspergillus niger isolated from Palm Oil Mill Effluent (POME). The fungus spores were treated with nitrous acid (HNO 2 ) and N-methyl-N’nitro-N-nitroso guanidine (NTG) for strain improvement. The mutated strains were evaluated for lipase production via fermentation of POME. Fungal growth, free fatty acid percentage, lipase activity and pH were analyzed in the course of fermentation using standard procedures. The result of the mutants and their lipase activity showed that Nitrous acid mutant (NA50) had the highest fungal growth and lipase activity to be 16.07 ± 0.03 x 10 6 cfu/mL and 11.69 ± 0.07 U/mL respectively. The lipase yield of the mutant NA50 was 39.00% improvement than the wild strain. Statistically, comparing lipase activity of NA50 strain to others showed a significant difference (p< 0.05). Subsequently, NTG mutants showed that strain NN120 had a 22.65% improvement in lipase activity over Nitrous acid mutant (NA50) strain and a 70.63% improvement over the wild strain A. niger. The results indicated that POME can be utilized for lipase production and the process can be enhanced through strain improvement using nitrous acid and N- methyl-N’nitro-N-nitroso guanidine Keywords: Lipases, Palm Oil Mill Effluent (POME), Mutagenic Chemicals, Strain, Fermentation 1. Introduction A major environmental issue of global concern is effective management of agricultural effluent such as Palm-oil mill effluent (POME) and Olive mill effluent [1]. Current observation is that the global intensification of agricultural products has resulted in the production of large quantities of food as well as generating lot of agricultural effluent as waste [2]. Improper management of the effluent can result to public health risk and environmental problems such as air pollution and diseases [3]. Palm-oil mill effluent (POME) is an organic residue generated as waste product during the extraction of palm oil from fresh palm fruits. The effluent is known with high compositions of total solids, suspended organic solids, dissolved organic matter among others [4] that can be utilized as substrate for microorganisms [5]. The utilization of this cheap available substrate to useful products will help in reducing environmental problems caused by this effluent. Thus, the conversion of this cheap readily available substrate by microorganisms into value added products like enzyme will enhance sustainable development [6]. Lipases catalyze the esterification of glycerol from mono, di and triglycerides [7]. These enzymes are widely distributed in nature and have been found in many species of animals, plants, bacteria, yeasts and fungi [8]. They are employed in waste water treatment (degreasing of lipid clogged drains), pharmaceutical (resolution of racemic