Archaeal Enzymes and Applications in Industrial Biocatalysts

Abstract

Archaeal enzymes are playing an important role in industrial biotechnology. Many representatives of organisms living in “extreme” conditions, the so-called Extremophiles, belong to the archaeal kingdom of life. This paper will review studies carried by the Exeter group and others regarding archaeal enzymes that have important applications in commercial biocatalysis. Some of these biocatalysts are already being used in large scale industrial processes for the production of optically pure drug intermediates and amino acids and their analogues. Other enzymes have been characterised at laboratory scale regarding their substrate specificity and properties for potential industrial application. The increasing availability of DNA sequences from new archaeal species and metagenomes will provide a continuing resource to identify new enzymes of commercial interest using both bioinformatics and screening approaches.

Alpha-amylase Production by Extremely Halophilic ArchaeonHalococcusStrain GUVSC8

“…To date, enzymes employed by industrial process are mostly obtained from bacteria, fungi, and yeast . However, studies on the members of the third domain of life, Archaea, have provided evidence of the novelty and superiority of their biocatalysts as compared to other domains …”

“…[6,7] However, studies on the members of the third domain of life, Archaea, have provided evidence of the novelty and superiority of their biocatalysts as compared to other domains. [8][9][10] Starch rich food is an important source of energy and is an integral part of our dietary carbohydrate. Due to the increasing demand for starch-rich food and rapid development in the food/ starch-processing industries, there is an increasing pressure for establishment of sophisticated technologies that employ amylolytic enzymes for starch processing.…”

Anaerobes in Industrial- and Environmental Biotechnology

“…Anaerobic bacteria and archaea from extreme environments and their thermostable enzymes have been the focus of studies for several years because of their potential as industrial biocatalysts for hydrolysis of polysaccharides and other biopolymers and for synthesis of chemicals and pharmaceutical intermediates [13,14]. These enzymes are expected to withstand the relatively harsh reaction conditions required for improving the solubility of reactants and products, mass transfer, and productivity.…”

Utilización de microorganismos de ambientes extremos y sus productos en el desarrollo biotecnológico

“…Además, las extremoenzimas pueden ser usadas como un modelo para diseñar y construir proteínas con nuevas propiedades de interés para determinadas aplicaciones industriales, a través de la manipulación genética de microorganismos Se han obtenido y caracterizado extremoenzimas provenientes de diferentes grupos de microorganismos extremófilos, muchas de ellas se aplican actualmente en procesos industriales sustentables, como la síntesis enantioselectiva de fármacos (Littlechild, 2015). Al ser biodegradables, su empleo es amigable con el ambiente, tienen una alta estabilidad bajo condiciones extremas (lo que elimina la necesidad de modificar las condiciones a lo largo de los procesos), permiten la utilización de materia prima sin procesar (lo que reditúa en una mayor eficiencia), permiten una reducción de costos y generan pocos productos secundarios y materiales de desecho (Reed y col., 2013).…”