Journal of Biological Sciences

Volume 22 (2), 50-56, 2022


Facebook Twitter Linkedin WhatsApp E-mail
Observations on the Digestive Enzymes in the Giant African Land Snails (Archachatina marginata): Significance and Prospects

Andrew Ayodeji Ajayi and Love Abolade Babatunde

Background and Objective: Determining digestive enzyme activity is a vista to obtain and understand valuable information about snail digestive physiology since digestion is an integral process of snail metabolism. This study investigated the activity of digestive enzymes in the gut regions of Archachatina marginata to determine the distribution of the enzymes and relate them to their functional properties. Materials and Methods: Thirty snail samples were analysed using the spectrophotometry method. Results: Lipase has the minimum activity and glucosidases are the most active enzymes in all the gut regions. The highest enzyme activity was found in the crop, followed by the small intestine. The salivary gland has the lowest enzyme activity. Conclusion: This study concludes that A. marginata is well-equipped with necessary enzymes that catalyse the digestion of its numerous diets. Cellulase secreting microbes can be isolated from the gut of A. marginata as a natural biocatalyst for the bioconversion of renewable energy resources to meet the demands of the future and sustainable world.

View Fulltext Back

How to cite this article:

Andrew Ayodeji Ajayi and Love Abolade Babatunde, 2022. Observations on the Digestive Enzymes in the Giant African Land Snails (Archachatina marginata): Significance and Prospects. Journal of Biological Sciences, 22: 50-56.


DOI: 10.3923/jbs.2022.50.56
URL: https://ansinet.com/abstract.php?doi=jbs.2022.50.56

Article Statistics