Abstract
Poly-ε-lysine (ε-PL), (S)-poly(imino(2-amino-1-oxo-1,6- hexanediyl)), is a naturally occurring homopolymer of l-lysine with a degree of polymerization of 25-35, and characterized by peptide bonds between the carboxyl and ε-amino groups of l-lysine. ε-PL is currently receiving much attention due to its wide applications in chemical, pharmaceutical, food, medical, clinical chemistry, biotechnology and other industries. Moreover, it is water-soluble, biodegradable, heat stable, edible and nontoxic towards humans. The present review discusses the production, recovery, characterization, biodegradation and applications of ε-PL. Production of ε-PL by fermentation is detailed, along with its industrial problems such as biodegradation. Various purification techniques for higher recovery of ε-PL are also described here. Issues of ε-PL degrading enzyme and its characterization studies have also been addressed. Molecular genetics as a tool for development of highly productive strains is also discussed herein. Applications of ε-PL in various industries showed to have an increasing impact on bioprocessing.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 8586-8603 |
Number of pages | 18 |
Journal | RSC Advances |
Volume | 3 |
Issue number | 23 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 21 Jun 2013 |
MoE publication type | A2 Review article, Literature review, Systematic review |
Keywords
- Polylysine
- biopolymer
- food biotechnology