BIOTECHNOLOGY IN PRODUCTION OF ENZYMES AND FOOD ADDITIVES

Enzymes are biological catalysts used to facilitate and speed up metabolic reactions in living organisms. They are proteins and require a specific substrate on which to work. Their catalysing conditions are set within narrow limits, e.g. optimum temperature, pH conditions and oxygen concentration. Most enzymes are denatured at temperatures above 42°C. However, certain bacterial enzymes are tolerant to a broader temperature range. Enzymes are essential in the metabolism of all living organisms and are widely applied as processing aids in the food and beverage industry.
The industrial production of enzymes from microorganisms involves culturing the microorganisms in huge tanks where enzymes are secreted into the fermentation medium as metabolites of microbial activity. Enzymes thus produced are extracted, purified and used as processing aids in the food industry and for other applications. Purified enzymes are cell free entities and do not contain any other macromolecules such as DNA.
Genetic technologies have not only improved the efficiency with which enzymes can be produced, but they have increased their availability, reduced their cost and improved their quality. This has had the beneficial impact of increasing efficiency and streamlining processes which employ the use of enzymes as processing aids in the food industry.

flavouring agents, organic acids, food additives and amino acids are all metabolites of microorganisms during fermentation processes. Microbial fermentation processes are therefore commercially exploited for production of these food ingredients. Metabolic engineering, a new approach involving the targeted and purposeful manipulation of the metabolic pathways of an organism, is being widely researched to improve the quality and yields of these food ingredients. It typically involves alteration of cellular activities by the manipulation of the enzymatic, transport and regulatory functions of the cell using recombinant DNA and other genetic techniques. Understanding the metabolic pathways associated with these fermentation processes, and the ability to redirect metabolic pathways, can increase production of these metabolites and lead to production of novel metabolites and a diversified product base