Enzymes are macromolecular biological catalysts. They are responsible for thousands of metabolic processes that sustain life. Enzymes are highly selective catalysts, greatly accelerating both the rate and specificity of metabolic chemical reactions, from the digestion of food to the synthesis of DNA. Enzymes act by converting starting molecules (substrates) into different molecules (products). Almost all chemical reactions in a biological cell need enzymes in order to occur at rates sufficient for life. Since enzymes are selective for their substrates and speed up only a few reactions from among many possibilities, the set of enzymes made in a cell determines which metabolic pathways occur in that cell, tissue and organ. Enzymes are in general globular proteins and range from just 62 amino acid residues in size, for the monomer of 4-oxalocrotonate tautomerase, to over 2,500 residues in the animal fatty acid syntheses. A small number of RNA-based biological catalysts exist, with the most common being the ribosome; these are referred to as either RNA-enzymes or ribozymes. Enzymes serve a wide variety of functions inside living organisms. They are indispensable for signal transduction and cell regulation, often via kinesis and phosphates. They also generate movement, with myosin hydrolyzing ATP to generate muscle contraction and also moving cargo around the cell as part of the cytoskeleton. Since the tight control of enzyme activity is essential for homeostasis, any malfunction (mutation, overproduction, underproduction or deletion) of a single critical enzyme can lead to a genetic disease. The importance of enzymes is shown by the fact that a lethal illness can be caused by the malfunction of just one type of enzyme out of the thousands of types present in our bodies. Enzymes are used by the pulp and paper industry for the removal of “stickies”, the glues, adhesives and coatings that are introduced to pulp during recycling of paper. Enzymes have been used in many kinds of detergents for over 30 years, since they were first introduced by Novozymes. Traditional use of enzymes in laundry detergents involved those that degrade proteins causing stains, such as those found in grass stains, red wine and soil. This is the domestic application for enzyme technology that most people are already familiar with. Historically, humans have been using enzymes for centuries, in early biotechnological practices, to produce foods, without really knowing it.

The industrial enzyme sector in India estimated at Rs 320 crore registered 34.45 percent growth during the year. There are about 17-20 players. Most of these companies are either into marketing or into formulations. The companies are also expanding their manufacturing bases to meet the local and global demand. Maps India is investing Rs 10 crore for production of new enzymes and microorganisms. The global demand for industrial enzymes was $ 2.5 billion with an annual growth rate of 5-10 percent. The USA, Europe and Japan together account for over 90 percent sales of the enzyme in the world. The global demand for enzymes will grow 6.5 percent annually. With least entry barriers and no social and regulatory risks involved in industrial biotechnology, the Indian companies that develop enzymes have a good future and would cross Rs 1000 crore mark in the next couple of years.

FURTHER INFORMATION:

Enzymes Biotechnology Handbook describes the detailed information on the subject. The major contents of this book are- large-scale extraction and purification of enzymes and other proteins, principles of industrial enzymology: basis of utilization of soluble and immobilized, principles of immobilization of enzymes, enzymes in clinical analysis – principles, practical aspects of large-scale protein, data on techniques of enzyme immobilization, enzymes in clinical analyses – data etc.

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