IMMOBILIZATION OF ENZYMES IN THEIR ECONOMIC REUSE-A REVIEW

Enzyme Immobilization has attracted much attention in recent years with proposed applications besides in industrial process these are basis for making of biotechnological products with applications in diagnostics, bioaffinity chromatography, and biosensors. The term immobilized enzymes refers to enzymes physically confined in a certain defined region of space with retention of their catalytic activities, and which can be used repeatedly and continuously. Immobilization stabilizes the structure of the enzyme, thereby allowing their applications even under harsh environmental conditions of pH, temperature, thermal denaturation and its economic reuse under stabilized conditions. Here the authors discuss various techniques of immobilization and consequences of enzyme immobilization such as catalytic activity, thermal stability and kinetics of immobilized enzymes. The major components of an immobilized enzyme system are the enzyme, the matrix, and the mode of attachment. The enzyme can be attached to the support by interactions ranging from reversible physical adsorption, stable covalent bonds, ionic linkage or entrapment