Inactivation thermodynamics and iso-kinetic profiling for evaluating operational suitability of milk clotting enzyme immobilized in composite polymer matrix

Milk clotting enzyme (MCE) was immobilized in alginate-pectate interwoven gel with the yield of 73%. The encapsulated enzyme retained most of the protein load while soluble enzyme lost major proportion of activity after few hours. The immobilized enzyme showed high operational stability by retaining 40% activity even after 10 uses. The narrow optimal working pH of soluble enzyme changed to a broader range after encapsulation and a shift in optimum temperature from 45 to 50 degrees C was also recorded for encapsulated enzyme. Studies on isokinetic temperature showed that immobilized enzyme is more thermo-stable at higher temperature. Immobilization, therefore, not only improved the catalytic properties and stability but also its suitability in food processes like cheese preparation with reduced cost and time. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.