Dr. Muhammad Hamid Rashid (PS, Group Leader)
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Ghulam Ali Waseer (Principal Scientific Assistant)

PhD Researchers:

• Mr. Muhammad Riaz (HEC PhD scholarship awardees)
• Mr. M. Rizwan Javed (HEC PhD scholarship awardees)
• Mr. Habibullah Nadeem (HEC PhD scholarship awardees)
• Miss. Tayaba Huma

M. Phil Students: 5

Objectives:

Objectives of Enzyme Engineering Group are:

• Engineering of industrially important enzymes through various enzyme engineering techniques to make them highly efficient and thermo-stable in aqueous, as well as, in organic solvents.
• Human resource development through supervision of research projects of M.Sc., M.Phil and PhD students from various Universities.
• Publication of results in journals of international reputes, so that salient findings go in public domain and become accessible to every person.

Enzyme Engineering tools: 

1. Chemical Modification of Enzymes
2. Metal Binding
3. Enzyme Immobilization
4. Mutagenesis of Microbes
5. Genetic Engineering

Thermostable and efficient enzymes are always required by the industry to withstand robust industrial conditions.

Enzyme engineering is the use of genetic and chemical techniques to change the structure and function of a protein, thus producing a novel product with specific, desired, properties. Enzymes are generally engineered to achieve the following goals: increase in Vmax; decrease in Km; change in pH optimum; elimination of an inhibition site; alteration of specificity of reaction; elimination of a residue that confers instability; improvement in thermo-stability and stability in organic solvents. Enzyme Engineering Group also focuses on the evaluation of kinetic mechanisms for activation/inhibition of the enzymes by metal ions. The quality of engineered enzyme molecules is evaluated in the light of kinetic and thermodynamic parameters for catalysis and stability.
 

Enzymes have excellent features (activity, selectivity, specificity) for designing processes of synthesis of very complex products under very mild and environmental friendly conditions. Enzymes are bio-molecules which have significant application in variety of industrial processes. Many industries are routinely using enzymes such as: paper and pulp industry; food industry, leather industry; pharmaceutical industry; alcohol and beverage industry; animal feed and detergents industry. Furthermore, enzymes have been widely used in textile industry for desizing, stain removing, fabric softening, de-pilling, pilling prevention as anti-redepositors, colour care agents, stone washing, bio-polishing, bio-finishing and smooth surfacing of cotton fabric. Moreover, enzymes have great ecological and commercial importance like: amelioration of municipal, forestry, agricultural and industrial wastes to control environmental pollution; bio-composting to produce natural organic fertilizers.

Enzymes have been optimized, via evolution, to fulfil their biological function: to catalyze reactions in very complex metabolic routes submitted to many levels of regulation. Therefore, enzymes seldom have the features adequate to be used as industrial catalysts. Thus, enzymes are soluble catalyst, quite unstable and inhibited by high concentrations of substrate or products. Therefore, thermostable and efficient enzymes are always required by industry to withstand robust industrial conditions.

Enzyme engineering is the use of genetic and chemical techniques to change the structure and function of a protein, thus producing a novel product with specific, desired, properties. Enzymes are generally engineered to achieve the following goals: increase in Vmax; decrease in Km; change in pH optimum; elimination of an inhibition site; alteration of specificity of reaction; elimination of a residue that confers instability; improvement in thermo-stability and stability in organic solvents. We also focus on the evaluation of kinetic mechanisms for activation/inhibition of enzymes by metal ions. The quality of engineered enzyme molecules is evaluated in the light of kinetic and thermodynamic parameters for catalysis and stability.

Site-directed mutagenesis has been used for thermo-stabilization of enzymes, but dramatic results have never been found, because the enzyme molecules are fairly tolerant to single amino acid replacements. Thermo-stabilization of enzymes has been generally related to the changes basically occurring on their surface because interior is already optimally packed. The structural elements responsible for higher enzyme thermo-stability have been found to be:  increase in hydrophobic interactions; reduction of: conformational strain, the entropy of unfolding and solvent accessible hydrophobic surface; compact packing; surface loop stabilization; hydrogen bonds; disulfide bridges; metal binding; glycosylation; resistance to covalent degradation and aromatic-aromatic interactions. Engineering of enzymes by carboxyl and amino group modifications of the surface amino acids could result into a dramatic increase in thermo-stability.

Enzymes in focus of Enzyme Engineering Group:

Currently we are working on the following microbial enzymes:

Enzymes	Industrial Applications
Amylases	Textile, Food
Cellulases	Textile, Detergent, Animal feed
b-glucosidases	Pharmaceutical, Food, Bio-fuel
b-galactosidases	Food, Pharmaceutical
Invertases	Food, Bio-fuel
Proteases	Leather, Detergent

 

Main Objectives of Enzyme Engineering Group:

• Engineering of enzymes through various techniques (chemical modification, enzyme immobilization and microbial strain development through random mutagenesis & expression cloning) for the synthesis of extremely active (efficient) and thermostable enzymes.
• Human resource development through supervision of research projects of M.Sc./ M.Phil and PhD students.
• Publication of results in journals of international repute for the advancement in scientific knowledge.

Group Achievements

Group Research Grants

Group Publications

Group Educational Endeavors