Biodegradation of Caffeine

Caffeine is a purine alkaloid which is naturally present in different varieties of plants, tea leaves, cocoa beans etc. It act as stimulant to central nervous system and has various negative withdrawal effect on health. Caffeine can be treated chemically as well as biologically. Biodegradation by bacteria is considered to be the most efficient technique in degrading caffeine within environment. In the present study, four isolates capable of utilizing caffeine as a sole source of carbon were isolated from garden soil. The bacteria were characterized by conventional morphological and biochemical test. To identify the intermediates and degradation end products, thin layer chromatography was performed in which Isolate 1 and Isolate 3 degrades caffeine and coffee respectively to form theobromine as the end product. Isolate 2 and Isolate 4 degrades caffeine and coffee respectively to form theophylline as the end product. Infrared spectroscopy of medium containing caffeine and coffee treated by four isolates shows the presence of functional group such as alcohol, amines and amides.