Chapter 9 - Seafood Enzymes and Their Application in Food Processing

Abstract

Large quantities of by-products and processing wastes generated by fishery processing industries can be potentially utilized for enzyme production and subsequent application of the enzymes in food product and drug development. Utilization of this huge quantity of waste for production of value-added compounds paves the way to sustainable and environmentally friendly waste management. Fish by-products provide an excellent low-cost nutrient source for enzyme production. Ensilation, fermentation, hydrolysate and fish oil production are some of the major enzyme-mediated methods applied for waste utilization. Protease and lipase enzymes are extensively used for the production of a range of traditional fermented fish products in Northeast India, Bangladesh, and Southeast Asian countries. Major seafood enzymes that have proven applications in food industry are nucleotide-degrading enzymes, myosin ATPases, phospholipases, lipases, transglutaminases, TMAO-degrading enzymes, digestive proteinases, trypsin isozymes, polyphenoloxidases, chitinolytic enzymes, ligninolytic enzymes, and lipoxygenases. Such enzymes and their products find applications in seafood quality testing, flavor, taste, texture manipulation, etc. Transglutaminases have an important role in surimi production. Some bacterial enzymes play specific roles in the degradation of amino acids and amines in seafoods subsequently producing toxic end products that can be used as indicators/diagnostic tools for food safety evaluation. In this chapter, the application potential of enzymes in seafood processing has been envisaged with special reference to fishery processing waste utilization and sustainable management.