Human hair-derived keratin: Extraction and comparative assessment

Proteins, being highly complex compounds, play a major role in the life of an organism. The human hair mainly comprises a scleroprotein, called keratin. Keratin is responsible for forming hairs, nails and epidermis. Keratin extracted from hair can be used as bioplastic films, fibres, plastic containers, cups and bottles, biofertilizers which improves plant growth by improving nutrient acquisition and they also enhance soil productivity by fixing atmospheric nitrogen. Keratin was extracted from 10 grams of male and female hair separately by Shindai method, which uses strong denaturing agents like urea, thiourea and mercaptoethanol. The supernatant was stored at 4˚C and keratin crystals were precipitated out, treated with 0.2% NaOH to remove mercaptoethanol and was stored at 4 °C. The extracted keratin was quantified using UV- Spectrophotometer and separated by Sodium Dodecyl Sulphate - Polyacrylamide Gel Electrophoresis. The results of the present study showed that the Shindai method extracts proteins easily and efficiently. Compared to male hair, female hair yielded more keratin. The UV spectrometer high absorption band for keratin was obtained between 200-500 nm. SDS-PAGE displayed a dark band in the range of α-keratin (40 - 70 KDa), which confirmed the type of keratin present in the hair.