Enzymes are protein molecules that act as specific catalysts for chemical reactions. They have made significant contributions to the traditional and modern chemical industries by improving existing processes. Representative industrial applications of enzymes are concentrated in the fields of technology applications, feed industry, food processing and cosmetics. Enzymes are natural catalysts. They are produced by living organisms to increase the speed of the enormous and diverse learning reactions required for life. They involve all processes necessary for life, such as DNA replication and transcription, protein synthesis, metabolism, and signal transduction. And their ability to perform very specific chemical transformations makes them increasingly useful in industrial processes.
Enzymes are used in a variety of applications including technical applications, food manufacturing, animal nutrition, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, and research and development tools. Currently, nearly 4,000 enzymes are known, of which about 200 original types of microorganisms are used commercially. However, only about 20 enzymes are produced on a real industrial scale. As the understanding of enzyme production biochemistry, fermentation processes and recovery methods increases, more and more industrial enzymes can be foreseen.
Enzymes have great potential in agriculture, biomass processing and biofuel production. In fact, some enzymes in agriculture have brought more effectiveness than traditional chemical processes, while at the same time being less harmful to the environment. Today, more and more enzymes are being used to increase agricultural productivity, improve biofuel quality, and achieve economical biomass conversion. The use of enzymes in arable agriculture and biofuels can alleviate the pursuit of agriculture and fossil energy. Therefore, new enzyme preparations are constantly being developed.
As a sustainable catalyst with a high reaction rate, enzymes are more concerned than chemical catalysts. Today, more and more chemical processes are replaced by enzymes due to clean and efficient catalytic performance. For example, in chiral synthesis, the enzyme exhibits extremely high stereospecificity, which is not observed in chemical catalysts, which simplifies the overall synthesis process.
The beauty and fascination of enzymes for research in industrial biotechnology is again exemplified. The total demand for enzymes in the global market is expected to increase rapidly in recent years. Carbohydrase will remain the main enzyme in the next few years. While strong growth in product categories will be led by multiple markets, including the food and beverage, animal feed and detergent industries. The application of medicinal enzymes will grow fastest as more per capita income in developing regions leads to more people getting health care.
A biologist, writer who lives in New York