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The vital role of biocatalysis for life processes is well accepted and is an important area of
research in medicine, biotransformations for bioremediation, and bioprocessing among
other areas. Moreso, as biocatalysis translates into both, a green and sustainable
technology as per the tenets of green chemistry and sustainable development, it is
constantly being expanded to include processes to prepare molecules of human interest.
The use of protein engineering and other aspects of biocatalysis such as substrate,
medium, and reactor engineering, can be utilized to improve the efficiency and cost-
effectiveness and, hence, the sustainability of biocatalytic reactions. In the last three
decades or so, various enzyme-based reactions – both as isolated enzymes and whole
cells were studied by the Chadha group. A yeast of the Candida sp. was used for a variety
of reactions to yield optically pure organic molecules. In a quest to establish the
mechanism of these reactions, stereospecific enzymes from this yeast were isolated,
purified and characterized. Crystal structure studies were carried out on a couple of
enzymes. The use of the single cell Thraustochytrid sp. associated with algae was
identified from local sources for the production of nutraceuticals like omega-3 fatty acids.
This bioprocess was optimized in the lab, scaled up to the pilot level and further scaled to
production level for commercial purposes. The talk will give an overview of the stated
work. |