Paper Title
Screening and Isolation of Cellulolytic Bacteria from Corn Cob Dumpsites in Oyo, Southwest Nigeria

Abstract
Cellulase production from agricultural wastes has been concentrated mostly on fungi. This study was carried out to isolate, characterize and screenbacteria isolated from corncob for cellulase production. Maize cobs were obtained from dumping sites at Oyo town, sundried and grounded prior bacteria isolation. Pour and spread plates techniques were used for isolation. Biochemical and physiological tests were used for bacteria identification. The identified bacteria were then cultivated, screened and optimized for enzyme production. Nineteen isolates were identified from the corn cobs using microscopic observation, morphological growth characteristics and biochemical tests. These include Bacillus spp(10), Pseudomonas spp(8) and Proteus spp (1). Cellulase production occurred within the exponential growth phase of the organism which was observed to be on day 7 using both glucose and CMC as carbon sources, respectively. The cellulase produced by Bacillus subtilis isolated from corn cob using CMC as a carbon source could be of great importance in agro industry in the production of economically useful animal feed. Keywords - Maize corn cob, Isolation, Cellulolytic bacteria, Enzyme activity, Oyo