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Halophilic hydrolases as a new tool for the biotechnological industries
Author(s) -
DelgadoGarcía Mariana,
ValdiviaUrdiales Blanca,
AguilarGonzález Cristóbal Noe,
ContrerasEsquivel Juan Carlos,
RodríguezHerrera Raúl
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
journal of the science of food and agriculture
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.782
H-Index - 142
eISSN - 1097-0010
pISSN - 0022-5142
DOI - 10.1002/jsfa.5860
Subject(s) - halophile , extremophile , industrial microbiology , enzyme , biology , biochemical engineering , microbiology and biotechnology , biochemistry , fermentation , bacteria , thermophile , engineering , genetics
Halophilic micro‐organisms are able to survive in high salt concentrations because they have developed diverse biochemical, structural and physiological modifications, allowing the catalytic synthesis of proteins with interesting physicochemical and structural properties. The main characteristic of halophilic enzymes that allows them to be considered as a novel alternative for use in the biotechnological industries is their polyextremophilicity, i.e. they have the capacity to be thermostable, tolerate a wide range of pH, withstand denaturation and tolerate high salt concentrations. However, there have been relatively few studies on halophilic enzymes, with some being based on their isolation and others on their characterisation. These enzymes are scarcely researched because attention has been focused on other extremophile micro‐organisms. Only a few industrial applications of halophilic enzymes, principally in the fermented food, textile, pharmaceutical and leather industries, have been reported. However, it is important to investigate applications of these enzymes in more biotechnological processes at both the chemical and the molecular level. This review discusses the modifications of these enzymes, their industrial applications and research perspectives in different biotechnological areas. Copyright © 2012 Society of Chemical Industry