MICROBIAL LIPASES FORM VERSATILE TOOLS FOR BIOTECHNOLOGY

Lipases are secreted into the culture medium by many bacteria and fung i. They catalyse not only the hydrolysis but also the synthesis of lon g-chain acylglycerols. Important uses in biotechnology include their a ddition to detergents, the manufacture of food ingredients, pitch cont rol in the pulp and paper industry, and biocatalysis of stereoselectiv e transformations. This makes them the most widely used class of enzym es in organic chemistry. Immobilization in hydrophobic sol-gel matrice s and in vitro evolution are promising novel approaches to increasing the stability or enantioselectivity, respectively, of lipases.