Analyzing the role of Enzymes

INTRODUCTION

Enzymes are indispensible biological catalysts in food processing, which considerably improves the efficiency and quality of various products (Abdullahi et al., 2021). Activation energy is reduced, allowing biochemical reactions to break down carbohydrates, proteins and fats. This enhances flavor, texture, and nutritional value. The growing demand for food quality has stimulated innovations in enzyme technology to ensure more sustainable production across all areas, including baking, brewing, dairy and meat production (Li et al., 2012). However, temperature, pH, and inhibitors can cause instability and effect the enzyme’s activity. This project will focus on the use of enzymes in the food industry and the challenges in their use and optimization.

challenges in their use and optimization.

1. STEPS INVOLVED IN THE INDUSTRY PROCESS

1. Enzyme selection

2. Fermentation

3. Purification

4. Application in production

5. Quality control

The application of enzymes in the food industry involves a step-by-step process well-structured to enhance efficiency and quality of the product. First, the right enzyme should be selected depending on its specific function, such as alpha-amylase in baking or lactase for lactose-free dairy (Khan & Selamoglu, 2020). These enzymes are then produced through microbial fermentation under controlled conditions. Purification is then done after fermentation; usually, impurities are removed by filtration or centrifugation. In this production, purified enzyme incorporates, hence improving texture, flavor or nutritional value of any food product (Kumar et al., 2024). The use of continuous quality control helps assure enzymes are in good function. This provides for excellent products and the reliability over quality.

2. ROLE AND USES OF ENZYMES IN FOOD INDUSTRY

There are significant applications of the use of enzymes in the food industry that catalyses biochemical, improves efficiency as well as product quality as part of promotion of sustainability. Processes can be carried out which would otherwise necessitate a higher energy, temperature or time without these enzymic agents, hence saving in cost and environmental effects.

• Alpha-Amylase: This is usually utilized in baking and brewing. Alpha-amylase acts to break down the starches into simpler sugar making baked products and drink appear moist or fluffy with a good aroma (Souza & Magalhaes, 2010).

• Lactase (Beta-galactosidase): Lactase is used in the dairy industry. Lactase breaks down lactose into glucose and galactose, making dairy products fit for lactose-intolerant people (Saqib et al., 2017)

• Proteases: These enzymes are important in meat tenderization and cheese production. Proteases break proteins into fragments, which makes various meat and dairy products more palatable and of better texture (Mohd Azmi et al., 2023)

• Lipases: Lipases have a function in flavor formation in cheeses and help in stabilizing fats in dairy and other processed foods (Kaur et al., 2009)

3. CAUSES OF ENZYME DENATURATION

Enzymes, being protein-based molecules, are sensitive to environmental factors that can lead to their denaturation, resulting in loss of function and inefficiency in industrial processes.

• Temperature extremes: High temperatures can disrupt the bonds maintain an enzyme’s three-dimensional structure, leading to denaturation and activity loss. Industrial enzymes typically operate within an optimal temperature range to avoid this issue.

• pH Deviations: Every enzyme has a pH at which it performs its catalytic action. If the pH of the system is not ideal, the structure of the active site of the enzyme will change, thereby lowering the catalytic efficiency (Bisswanger, 2014)

• Chemical Inhibitors: Presence of certain chemicals can cause inhibition of the enzyme because of their binding to the enzyme or changing the conformation of the enzyme. This is also not favourable in food processing, as purity and precision are involved (Robinson, 2015).

• Substrate concentration: When the levels of the substrate are very low, activity will be decreased or limited for enzyme activity. As a result, there is low yield and a low rate of reaction. For instance, in baking, a higher yield can be obtained due to insufficient substrate concentrations due to alpha-amylase (Kumar et al., 2024)

• Environment: The environment also affects the stability and activity of enzymes through humidity and ionic strength, thereby requiring exercising control over these aspects for optimal enzymatic processes and a constant quality of products (Okpara, 2022)

4. PROBLEM-SOLVING PROCESS

Throughout this project, there were a number of problems encountered with regards to knowledge of the particular enzymes in use within the industry and the factors influencing their activity. It was difficult to access precise information on the enzymes used and the parameters governing their operation. I met professionals in the food industry, interviewed and consulted them in order to access knowledge on the production processes. Collaboration with experts shed light on the role of enzymes in their operations, and the impact of environmental conditions was highly emphasized. A scientific method toward solving the problem helped gather good data and raise educated hypotheses on potential problems in the activity of enzymes.

5. ISSUES ENCOUNTERED

• It was very hard to get particular information from industry partners on the specific uses of enzymes in various food processing applications.

• There was the problem of getting the latest studies or even new findings on uses of enzymes in food, because most sources were old and did not represent actual applications.

• The variability in environmental factors that affects the performance of enzymes in the production line was another challenge.

6. PROPOSED SOLUTION

A comprehensive review of the operating conditions ensures that this enzyme operates at appropriate temperatures and levels of pH (da Silva et al., 2011). Hence, it will not lose any activity due to this. Standardized storage and handling practices will reduce exposure to denaturing factors. Constant employee training in best practice operations, including managing the concentrations of substrates, is expected to optimize productivity; chemical inhibitors must not be used. Using the various enzyme stabilizers and stable preparations are also bound to strengthen the stability (Iyer & Ananthanarayan, 2008). Prioritizing all these strategies, the food sector will ensure the right use of enzymes in all productions as it contributes to proper food quality and optimal efficiency and sustainability in its operation and production (Kuddus, 2018). The frequency of reassessment will facilitate easy responses to change.

7. RESOURCES USED

The following were the resources used to work on this project. It was a combination of:

• Scholarly articles

• Industry reports

• Expert interviews

The scholarly articles were used for the foundation knowledge about enzymatic applications and the recent progress within the field. The industry reports offered insights about the practical applications and market trends in the current era. Interviews with food processing industry professionals added depth to the research as they described personal experiences and operational practices of using enzymes in food processing. This multi-dimensional approach ensured that the role of enzymes in the food industry was understood well to highlight potential challenges and areas of improvement.

8. PERFORMANCE ANYALYSIS

Enzymes catalyse biochemical reactions, thus speeding up efficiency and improving product quality while at the same time ensuring sustainability in production. It supports processes which, in their absence would absorb more energy, temperature or time, hence saving energy, time, and material utilization. For instance, hydrolysis of starch during baking by alpha-amylase leaves it soft, with enhanced flavor while the lactase helps the dairy industry to produce necessary milk products for people that are lactose intolerant. Moreover, food products’ sensory qualities including flavor, texture, and appearance are enhanced through the action of enzymes. Enzymes work better than chemical catalysts but under milder conditions.

9. CONCLUSION

Enzymes have improved product quality, productivity, and sustainability. If strict enzyme selection is in effect, effective fermentation takes place, and there are stringent control measures on the part of food manufactures, they shall improve their processes. Another problem that denaturation due to temperature or pH alteration can be combated is through standard handling, combined with constant training on part of the employees. Through this project, enzymes enhance the sensory qualities and produce something toward sustainable production. With increased research and further discussion from industry experts, there is a lot that has not been done regarding the use of enzymes.

10. WHAT I HAVE LEARNED IN THIS PROJECT

Enzymes are proteins that speed up chemical reactions in the body without being used up. The enzyme specificity is very important, as it provides each enzyme to catalyze only one particular reaction or be involved with only one or limited substrates in the body’s internal environment. This specificity means that each step in a metabolic pathway that takes place at the right time and at the right place within the cell, thus avoiding untoward side reactions that could imbalance a cell. For example, if enzymes were not selective, reactions could take place at the wrong time or wrong place and could therefore result in the formation of dangerous byproducts or wasteful utilization of resources. This way, through targeting particular substrates, the enzymes use less energy and help to keep the environment constant for sustaining life, the body is capable of providing the correct response to multiple needs and complex metabolic pathways are kept running efficiently without the risk of disruption.

REFERENCES

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Da Silva, L.C. A., Honorato, T. L., Cavalcante, R. S., Franco, T. T., & Rodrigues, S. (2011). Effect of pH and Temperature on Enzyme Activity of Chitosanase produced under solid stated fermentation by Trchoderma spp. Indian Journal of Microbiology, 52 (1), 60-65. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12088-011-0196-0

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Kaur, A., Minhas, K. S., & Jooyandesh, H. (2009). (PDF) Lipases in dairy industry: A Review. Research Gate. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/267867671_Lipases_in_dairy_industry_A_review

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Khan, U.M., & Selamoglu, Z. (2020). Use of Enzymes in Dairy Industry: A Review of Current Progress. Archives of Razi Institute, 75(1), 131-136. https://doi.org/10.22092/ari.2019.126286.1341

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