Immobilized enzymes as tools in food analysis

Area of Science:

• Analytical Chemistry
• Biochemistry
• Food Science

Background:

• Selective enzymatic reactions offer potential for chemical analysis.
• Limited research exists on applying these reactions to real-world sample analysis, particularly in food matrices.
• Enzymatic methods provide high specificity and sensitivity for target analyte detection.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review key publications on the application of selective enzymatic reactions in food analysis.
• To consolidate information on different enzymatic techniques used for analyzing real food samples.
• To provide an overview of current trends and methodologies in enzymatic food analysis.

Main Methods:

• Review of scientific literature focusing on enzymatic analysis in food.
• Categorization of applications into biosensors, flow injection analysis (FIA) with immobilized enzymes, and high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with immobilized enzymes.
• Analysis of methods for determining sugars (primarily glucose) and inhibitors in food products.

Main Results:

• Biosensors offer rapid, on-site detection capabilities for food components.
• The combination of immobilized enzymes with FIA enables efficient and automated analysis.
• Immobilized enzymes coupled with HPLC provide high resolution and sensitivity for complex food matrices.
• Enzymatic methods are predominantly used for glucose determination but are also applicable to inhibitor analysis.

Conclusions:

• Enzymatic reactions are valuable tools for the analysis of real food samples.
• Immobilized enzymes integrated with techniques like biosensors, FIA, and HPLC significantly advance food analysis.
• Further research can expand the scope of enzymatic methods for a wider range of food analytes and contaminants.