Question

What is a biocatalyst? Give an example?

Answer 1

Hint: Biocatalyst refers to the use of the living system so as to speed up a reaction. In these kinds of reactions natural catalysts such as enzymes are used to perform chemical transformations on organic compounds. The resultant that is formed is an organic product.

Complete answer:
We know that enzymes are almost all proteins. There are some nucleic acids that behave like enzymes. They are called ribozymes.
An enzyme is a protein that has a primary structure i.e, amino acid sequence of the proteins. We might have seen in the tertiary structure that the backbone of the protein chain folds upon itself, the chain criss -cross itself and hence, many services or pockets are made. One such pocket is the "active site. It is the place where the substrate fits. Thus enzymes, through their active site, catalyse reaction at a high rate.
Biocatalyst is mainly a natural substance that includes these enzymes from biological sources or whole cells to speed up a reaction from its normal speed. Currently, there have been hundreds of different biocatalytic processes that have been implemented in various chemical, food, and pharma based industries. These processes are similar to conventional processes in many ways.
The process of biocatalysis starts from identification of the target reaction, discovery of biocatalyst, characterization, engineering and process modelling. Biocatalyst engineering required rational design and direct evolution. The impact of use of biocatalyst is evident in all streams in technology and agriculture.

Note:
Biocatalyst has become a relevant tool in the synthesis of APIs. They have been an efficient, sustainable, and less polluting method for the production of APIs and advanced pharmaceutical intermediates. They have become a powerful tool for the production of complex chemicals too.