L-Glutaminase as a Therapeutic Enzyme of Microbial Origin

Enzymes control and regulate all biochemical processes in the body. In a single second, several million enzymes mediate chemical reactions occurring in a living system. Enzymes are highly specific in their function because each enzyme is programmed to carry out one special task. The immense number of enzymes acts as a perfect troop to ensure that enormously complex life mechanisms and processes occur in the right direction. A sufficient amount and optimal function of enzymes present in the human body are essential for life and health. Microbial enzymes play a major role in the diagnosis, curing, biochemical investigation, and monitoring of many dreaded diseases. Microorganisms represent an excellent source of many therapeutic enzymes owing to their broad biochemical diversity and their susceptibility to genetic manipulation. By considering the requirement for large-scale production of such enzymes, a brief outline of the various production techniques, and downstream processing are discussed on the basis of L-glutaminase as a typical microbial therapeutic enzyme.