Thermostable marine microbial proteases for industrial applications: scopes and risks.

Thermostable proteases are important in biotechnological and industrial sectors, due to their stability against denaturing agents and chemicals. The feature that gives them such unique applicability is their reaction at high temperatures, which affords a high concentration of substrate, and less risk of microbial contamination. Nearly 65% of industrial proteases are isolated from marine microbial source, and they can significantly resist a wide range of organic solvents at high temperatures. The most important trait of marine organisms is their adaptability, which allows them to grow optimally in harsh environments such as high salt, temperatures, and pressure-the characteristics of deep-sea hot springs and geothermal sediments. However, proteases are immunogenic, and they can trigger inflammatory conditions in human; so their safety assessment prior to industrial usage is of paramount importance. This review focusses on marine-origin thermophilic proteases, their thermal resistance, scopes of their industrial applications, and risks.