Role of enzymes in pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries

Abstract

In the modern world, enzymes are not just catalysts but also "tools" that modify the process based on the requirement. Enzymes hold key functions in the reactions where other alternatives fail to deliver the desired outputs. The main features of enzymes are their specificity, reusability, and non-formation of unwanted by-products that may contaminate the product as well as the environment. These features have made enzymes a popular choice in the biopharmaceutical sector. The increased use of enzymes is also attributed to high efficiency and low cost achieved by adapting modern techniques such as strain improvement, mutations, genetic engineering, recombinant DNA technology, etc. Additionally, the enzyme activity can be controlled by physical or chemical methods making them applicable to a wide range of processes. Enzyme application in various fields is possible due to the continuous research in biotechnology. The global market of enzymes in the industrial sector is valued at 4.91 billion USD in 2015 and is expected to reach 9.74 billion USD by 2022 as reported by Stratistics Market Research Consulting Pvt. Ltd. The pharmaceutical and biotechnology sectors contribute to a major share of revenue generation globally. This chapter provides an overview of enzymatic applications in the biopharmaceutical sector along with the current market scenario and expected future trends.