- The enzyme Amylase catalyses the hydrolysis of starch into oligosaccharides and sugars. Bacteria isolated from the soil are the most common sources of amylase. In this study, soil samples (n=30) collected from different sites of Changanacherry were taken for screening amylase-producing bacteria. The samples were serially diluted and representative bacterial flora was isolated by plating on the nutrient agar media. The amylase production of these isolates was assessed using starch agar. Thirteen isolates were selected for further investigations. The growth conditions of these isolates were optimized and they were analysed for antagonistic activity. Two strains were selected for assessing antibacterial resistance patterns by the well diffusion method and to check the antibiotic sensitivity against 12 antibiotics using the disk diffusion method. The microbiological and biochemical characteristics of these strains were also determined. They were tested for extracellular amylase activity at elevated temperatures using the DNS assay method. The strain showing maximum amylase activity (2.395 units/ml) was identified as Alcaligenes faecalis using 16S rDNA-based method. The selected thermophilic strains can be employed to degrade starchy waste materials in monoculture or in a consortium, as well as for the industrial production of amylase. The study highlights that there is an increased scope for identifying industrially important bacteria from soil

Keywords : Soil, Bacterial strain, Antagonism, Extracellular amylase, Isolates.