Abstract

Proteolytic enzymes produced by thermophiles are of considerable interest because they are stable and active at elevated temperatures. Moreover, they are resistant to organic solvents, detergents, low and high pH and other denaturants. Such properties allow many technological processes. Advantages of thermozymes applications are reduced risk of microbial contamination, increased mass transfer, lower viscosity and improved susceptibility of some proteins to enzyme molecules. This review covers thermostabilization strategies and some properties of thermostable proteases as well as their current and future applications in food processing, medicine and some other industries.

Key words: Thermozymes, keratinases, proteases, thermophiles.