Evaluation of the efficiency of nanoparticles for increasing α-amylase enzyme activity for removing starch stain from paper artifacts

Starch stain is a common stain on paper artifacts. This stain leads to deformation of the surface of the paper and promotes the growth of microbiological deterioration. This study aims to use nanoparticles with an alpha-amylase enzyme to improve its quality for removing this type of stain from the surface of paper artifacts. Accelerated heat aging was used on starch stain applied on the new paper samples. The alpha-amylase enzyme was prepared. Silver and gold nanoparticles were biosynthesized by local fungal isolation. The produced silver and gold nanoparticles were characterized by using different techniques of analysis (UV-Visible spectroscopy, Transmission Electron Microscope (TEM), and X-Ray diffraction (XRD) analysis). Different concentrations of Ag-NPs and Au-NPs were added to the alpha-amylase reaction mixture to enhance its activity for removing starch stains. Some analytical techniques were also used for the evaluation of the efficiency of alpha-amylase and nanoparticles for removing starch stains (Color measurement, Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM), and pH measurement). The results proved that Ag-NPs at 20 microliters increased the activity to about 160%, whereas Au-NPs enhanced the activity to about 140% at a concentration of 5 mu L. The results showed that alpha-amylase enzyme incorporated with Ag-NPs exhibited better results more than its use alone. The addition of Ag-NPs to alpha-amylase enzyme for the removal of starch stain reduced the total color differences, improved the surface morphology. (C) 2021 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

Starch stain is a common issue in paper artifacts, causing deformation and microbial deterioration. This study utilized nanoparticles and an alpha-amylase enzyme to remove starch stains from paper surfaces. The addition of silver nanoparticles increased the enzyme's activity by 160%, while gold nanoparticles enhanced it by 140%.