Enzyme Immobilization: The Fascinating Challenge in Biotechnology

Immobilized enzymes are widely used for variety of applications. Based on the type of application, the method of immobilizati on and support material can be selected. The immobilized enzymes can be separated from the reaction mixture and reused and also immobilized in order to prevent the enzyme from being exposed to harsh conditions, high temperature, surfactants, and oxid izing agents etc. the immobilized enzymes are also widely used in food industry, phar maceutical industry, bioremediation, detergent industry, textile industry, etc. Enzyme i mmobilization improves the operational stability and is also due to the increased enzyme l oading which causes the controlled diffusion. Several hundreds of enzymes are immobili zed and used for various large scale industries. Immobilization technique reduces the ef fluent treatment costs and this paper reviews the methods applications and recent advance s of immobilized enzymes.