Purification and in situ immobilization of lipase from of a mutant of Trichosporon laibacchii using aqueous two-phase systems

The crude intracellular lipase (cell homogenate) from Trichosporon laibacchii was subjected to partial purification by aqueous two-phase system (ATPS) and then in situ immobilization by directly adding diatomites as carrier to the top PEG-rich phase of ATPS. A partition study of lipase in the ATPS formed by polyethylene glycol–potassium phosphate has been performed. The influence of system parameters such as molecular weight of PEG, system phase composition and system pH on the partitioning behaviour of lipase was evaluated. The ATPS consisting of PEG 4000 (12%) and potassium phosphate (K₂HPO₄, 13%) resulted in partition of lipase to the PEG-rich phase with partition coefficient 7.61, activity recovery 80.4%, and purification factor of 5.84 at pH of 7.0 and 2.0% NaCl. Moreover, the in situ immobilization of lipase in PEG phase resulted in a highest immobilized lipase activity of 1114.6 U g^?1. The above results show that this novel lipase immobilization procedure which couples ATPS extract and enzyme immobilization is cost-effective as well as time-saving. It could be potentially useful technique for the purification and immobilization of lipase.     

Extracellular cold-active lipase of Microbacterium luteolum isolated from Gangotri glacier,western Himalaya: Isolation,partial purification and characterization

A psychrophilic bacterium producing cold-active lipase upon growth at low temperature was isolated from the soil samples of Gangotri glacier and identified as Microbacterium luteolum. The bacterial strain produced maximum lipase at 15 °C, at a pH of 8.0. Beef extract served as the best organic nitrogen source and ammonium nitrate as inorganic for maximum lipase production. Castor oil served as an inducer and glucose served as an additional carbon source for production of cold-active lipase. Ferric chloride as additional mineral salt in the medium, highly influenced the lipase production with an activity of 8.01 U ml^?1. The cold-active lipase was purified to 35.64-fold by DEAE-cellulose column chromatography. It showed maximum activity at 5 °C and thermostability up to 35 °C. The purified lipase was stable between pH 5 and 9 and the optimal pH for enzymatic hydrolysis was 8.0. Lipase activity was stimulated in presence of all the solvents (5%) tested except with acetonitrile. Lipase activity was inhibited in presence of Mn²⁺, Cu²⁺, and Hg²⁺; whereas Fe⁺, Na⁺ did not have any inhibitory effect on the enzyme activity. The purified lipase was stable in the presence of SDS; however, EDTA and dithiothreitol inhibited enzyme activity. Presence of Ca²⁺ along with inhibitors stabilized lipase activity. The cold active lipase thus exhibiting activity and stability at a low temperature and alkaline pH appears to be practically useful in industrial applications especially in detergent formulations.     

Partitioning of protease from stomach of albacore tuna (Thunnus alalunga) by aqueous two-phase systems

Partitioning of protease from stomach of albacore tuna using an aqueous two-phase system (ATPS) was investigated. The best ATPS conditions for protease partitioning from stomach extract (SE) and acidified counterpart (ASE) were 25% PEG1000–20% MgSO₄ and 15% PEG2000–15% MgSO₄, which increased the purity by 7.2-fold and 2.4-fold with the recovered activity of 85.7% and 89.1%, respectively. Electrophoretic study revealed that SE had a major protein with a molecular weight (MW) of 40.6 kDa, while protein with MW of 32.7 kDa was predominant in ASE and ATPS fractions. Pepsinogen in SE might be activated to pepsin by acidification and partitioning process. SE was quite stable at 0 and 4 °C up to 14 days. The loss in protease activity in ASE and selected ATPS fractions was more pronounced when storage time and temperature increased. Therefore, ATPS can be effectively used to recover and purify protease from albacore tuna stomach.     

Two phase partitioning and collagen hydrolysis of bromelain from pineapple peel Nang Lae cultivar

Extraction of bromelain from pineapple peel (Nang Lae cultv.) using aqueous two phase system (ATPS) was optimized. Some biochemical properties including collagen hydrolysis were also investigated. Bromelain predominantly partitioned to the polyethylene glycol (PEG)-rich phase. The highest enzyme activity recovery (113.54%) and purification fold (2.23) were presented in the top phase of 15% PEG2000–14% MgSO₄. Protein pattern and activity staining showed the molecular weight (MW) of bromelain to be about 29 kDa. The extracted bromelain showed the highest relative activity at pH 7.0 and 55 °C. Its activity was decreased continuously by increasing NaCl concentration (up to 1.5% (w/v)). The bromelain extract was applied to hydrolyze the skin collagen of beef and giant catfish (0–0.3 units). The β, α₁, α₂ of giant catfish skin collagen extensively degraded into small peptides when treated with 0.02 units of the bromelain extract. Bovine collagen was hydrolyzed using higher bromelain up to 0.18 units. This study showed the ATPS can be employed to partially purify bromelain from Nang Lae pineapple peel and the enzyme effectively hydrolyzed the collagens.     

A new thermostable and organic solvent-tolerant lipase from Aneurinibacillus thermoaerophilus strain HZ

A thermostable and organic solvent-tolerant lipase produced by Aneurinibacillus thermoaerophilus strain HZ was purified and characterised. The lipase was purified to apparent homogeneity with two steps: anion exchange chromatography on Q-Sepharose and gel filtration on Sephadex-G75. A final specific activity of 43.5 U/mg was obtained with an overall recovery of 19.7% and 15.6 purification fold. The molecular mass of the HZ lipase was estimated to be 50 kDa. The optimum pH for the activity of the purified HZ lipase was 7.0. The stability showed a broad range of pH values between pH 4.0 and 9.0 at 30 °C. The purified HZ lipase exhibited an optimum temperature of 65 °C with a half-life of 3 h and 10 min at 65 °C. The activity of the purified HZ lipase was stimulated in the presence of Ca²⁺. Organic solvents such as dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO), methanol, n-tetradecane and n-hexadecane enhanced the lipase activity. Studies on the effect of oil showed that the lipase preferred natural oil, such as sunflower oil, over synthetic substrates.     

Separation and purification of laccases from two different fungi using aqueous two-phase extraction

Selective purification still poses a challenge in the downstream processing of biomolecules such as proteins and especially enzymes. In this study a polyethylene glycol 3000 (PEG 3000)–phosphate aqueous two-phase system at 25 °C and pH 7 was successfully used for laccase purification and separation. Initially, the effect of phase forming components on enzyme activities in homogenous systems was studied. In the course of the extraction experiments tie lines, enzyme source, initial enzyme activities, phase ratio and sodium chloride concentrations were varied and their influence on the activity partitioning was determined. Partitioning results were validated using clear-native-PAGE and isoelectric focusing. Based on these results, the separation of laccases from Trametes versicolor and Pleurotus sapidus was investigated using the principle of superposition. Sodium chloride was used to adjust laccase partitioning in the applied aqueous two-phase system (ATPS). Finally, two modes of operation are proposed depending on the aim of the purification task. One mode with 0.133 g g⁻¹ of PEG3000, 0.063 g g⁻¹ of phosphate and without sodium chloride separates P. sapidus laccases from T. versicolor laccases with clearance factors of 5.23 and 6.45, respectively. The other mode of operation with 0.124 g g⁻¹ of PEG3000, 0.063 g g⁻¹ of phosphate and 0.013 g g⁻¹ of sodium chloride enables a partitioning of both laccases into the bottom phase of the ATPS resulting in a purification factor of 2.74 and 96% activity recovery.     

Application of TMA-PEG to promote C-phycocyanin extraction from S. platensis in the PEG ATPS

A novel aqueous two phase system (ATPS) using trimethylamine-polyethylene glycols (TMA-PEG) to promote the extraction of C-phycocyanin (C-PC) from S.platensis was introduced. The purity of C-PC (EP) obtained in the ATPS of PEG1000/Na₃PO₄ was increased 2.1 times by the addition of TMA-PEG1000. The purification factor was enhanced from 2.9 to 10.1 when 65% TMA-PEG1000 was added in the system. The ATPS operation must be carried out in the pH range of 6.0-7.0 and at temperatures less than 35 °C for maintaining the stability of C-PC. The partition coefficient and recovery ratio of C-PC increased with the increasing concentration of TMA-PEG. The system parameters like TMA-PEG1000 content, tie line length (TLL), pH, temperature and phase volume ratio (V_r) were screened and optimized using the fractional factorial design and Box-Behnken experiment design. The optimized system is composed of 11.8% PEG1000/TMA-PEG1000 (w/w), 64.42% TMA-PEG1000 (w/w PEG1000) and 9.5% Na₃PO₄ (w/w) with 38.19% TLL (w/w) and 0.89 V_r at pH 6.5 and 25 °C. The obtained value of EP was 5.21 in one-stage ATPS and 6.7 in two-stage ATPS. The recovery ratio of C-PC in the new ATPS extraction system was more than 97%.     

One-step purification of YLLIP2 isoforms from Candida sp. 99–125 by polyethyleneimine modified poly(glycidyl methacrylate-co-ethylene glycol dimethacrylate) monolith

The extracellular lipase Yarrowia lipolytica (YLLIP2) crude extract was efficiently separated and purified from Candida sp. 99–125 by one-step ion-exchange chromatography on polyethyleneimine (PEI) functionalized monolithic columns. The preparative conditions for the functionalization of monoliths were optimized, including PEI molecular mass, PEI concentration, modification time and temperature. The monolithic skeleton was prepared in situ by polymerization of glycidyl methacrylate (GMA) and ethylene glycol dimethacrylate (EGDMA) with a volume ratio of 8:2. Heptane was used as the porogen. PEI 30 kDa with the concentration of 10% (v/v) was applied for the modification of the monolith at 55 °C for 12 h. Lipase (EC.3.1.1.3) from Candida sp. 99–125 was separated to four isoforms (isoform A, isoform B, isoform C and isoform D). As analyzed on non-denaturing PAGE and MALDI-TOF–MS, the four isoforms are homogenous and have the same molecular mass of approximate 38 kDa. The monoliths can afford direct crude lipase loading without increasing too much back pressure, which explores the great potential of the application of monoliths for one-single step fast separation and purification of complicated proteins.     

Purification and properties of enantioselective lipase from a newly isolated Bacillus cereus C71

A lipase from Bacillus cereus C71 was purified to homogeneity by ammonium sulfate precipitation, followed by Phenyl-Sepharose chromatography, DEAE ion exchange chromatography and CIM^® QA chromatography. This purification procedure resulted in a 1092-fold purification of lipase with 18% yield. The molecular mass of the purified enzyme was determined to be approximately 42 kDa by SDS-PAGE and mass spectrometer. The lipase was stable in the pH range of 8.5–10.0, with the optimum pH 9.0. The enzyme exhibited maximum activity at 33 °C and retained 92% of original activity after incubation at 35 °C for 3 h. The protein hydrolyzed p-nitrophenyl esters with acyl chain lengths between C4 and C12. Enzyme activity was strongly inhibited in the presence of Cu²⁺ and Zn²⁺ but promoted by non-ionic surfactants. The lipase demonstrated higher enantioselectivity toward R-isomer of ethyl 2-arylpropanoate than the commercial lipases, and can be used potentially as a catalyst to prepare optically pure pharmaceuticals.     

Production,purification and characterization of an extracellular lipase from Aureobasidium pullulans HN2.3 with potential application for the hydrolysis of edible oils

Lipase production (8.02 ± 0.24 U/ml) by the yeast Aureobasidium pullulans HN2.3 isolated from sea saltern was carried by using time-dependent induction strategy. The lipase in the supernatant of the yeast cell culture was purified to homogeneity with a 3.4-fold increase in specific lipase activity as compared to that in the supernatant by ammonium sulfate fractionation, gel filtration chromatography and anion-exchange chromatography. According to the data on SDS polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, the molecular mass of the purified enzyme was estimated to be 63.5 kDa. The optimal pH and temperature of the purified enzyme were 8.5 and 35 °C, respectively. The enzyme was greatly inhibited by Hg²⁺, Fe²⁺ and Zn²⁺. The enzyme was strongly inhibited by phenylmethanesulphonyl fluoride, not inhibited by ethylene diamine tetraacetic acid (EDTA), but weakly inhibited by iodoacetic acid. It was found that the purified lipase had the highest hydrolytic activity towards peanut oil.     

Purification,characterization and application of acidic lipase from Pseudomonas gessardii using beef tallow as a substrate for fats and oil hydrolysis

Beef tallow, a slaughter house waste was used as a substrate for lipase production, employing Pseudomonas gessardii. The strain, P. gessardii was isolated from the beef tallow acclimatized soil. The crude lipase activity at 139 U/ml by volume was obtained at optimized conditions of pH 5.0 and temperature of 37 °C. After purification, a 7.59-fold purity of lipase with specific activity of 1120 U/mg protein and molecular mass of 92 kDa was obtained. The purified lipase showed maximum activity and stability at pH 5.0 and 30 °C. Ca²⁺ had a stimulatory effect on the lipase activity compared to the other metal ions studied. The relative activity was enhanced with the addition of Triton X-100 with lower hydrophilic–lipophilic balance (HLB) value as 13.0 and DMSO with the lowest partition coefficient (log P) value, as 1.378. The amino acid composition and the functional groups of lipase were confirmed by HPLC and FT-IR spectroscopy. The purified lipase had the highest hydrolytic activity towards slaughterhouse wastes and vegetable oils. This work provides a potential biocatalyst for the wide applications in oleochemical and biotechnological industries.     

A novel mono- and diacylglycerol lipase highly expressed in Pichia pastoris and its application for food emulsifier preparation

A mono- and diacylglycerol lipase (MDL) was cloned from Penicillium cyclopium and expressed in Pichia pastoris strain GS115. The recombinant enzyme was named Lipase GH1. High cell density fermentation was performed by culture in a 7.5-L fermenter using BSMG medium, in which the phosphate in basal salt medium was replaced by sodium glycerophosphate (Na₂GP). The maximal lipase activity detected was 18,000 U per mL, and total protein content in the fermentation supernatant was 3.94 g per L. The activity of the liquid enzyme remained stable under alkaline conditions at 4 °C for 6 months and was 50% after one year. Lipase GH1 was used for the synthesis of mono- and diacylglycerols (MAGs and DAGs), which are commonly used emulsifiers for industrial applications. A conversion rate of 84% after 24 h of reaction was obtained using glycerol/oleic acid molar ratio 11:1, water content 1.5 wt%, enzyme dosage 80 U per g, and reaction temperature 35 °C. Lipase GH1 was more efficient for the synthesis of MAGs and DAGs than was Lipase G50 (a similar, commercially available lipase derived from Penicillium camemberti) when oleic acid was used as an acyl donor. Lipase GH1 has potential for food emulsifier preparation.     

Purification and characterization of an organic solvent-tolerant lipase from Pseudomonas aeruginosa LX1 and its application for biodiesel production

An organic solvent-tolerant lipase from newly isolated Pseudomonas aeruginosa LX1 has been purified by ammonium sulfate precipitation and ion-exchange chromatography leading to 4.3-fold purification and 41.1% recovery. The purified lipase from P. aeruginosa LX1 was homogeneous as determined by SDS-PAGE, and the molecular mass was estimated to be 56 kDa. The optimum pH and temperature for lipase activity were found to be 7.0 and 40 °C, respectively. The lipase was stable in the pH range 4.5–12.0 and at temperatures below 50 °C. Its hydrolytic activity was found to be highest towards p-nitrophenyl palmitate (C16) among the various p-nitrophenol esters investigated. The lipase displayed higher stability in the presence of various organic solvents, such as n-hexadecane, isooctane, n-hexane, DMSO, and DMF, than in the absence of an organic solvent. The immobilized lipase was more stable in the presence of n-hexadecane, tert-butanol, and acetonitrile. The transesterification activity of the lipase from P. aeruginosa LX1 indicated that it is a potential biocatalyst for biodiesel production.     

Thermophilic lipase from Thermomyces lanuginosus: Gene cloning,expression and characterization

An extracellular lipase gene ln1 from thermophilic fungus Thermomyces lanuginosus HSAUP₀₃80006 was cloned through RT-PCR and RACE amplification. Its coding sequence predicted a 292 residues protein with a 17 amino acids signal peptide. The deduced amino acids showed 78.4% similarity to another lipase lgy from T. lanuginosus while shared low similarity with other fungi lipases. Higher frequencies hydrophobic amino acids related to lipase thermal stability, such as Ala, Val, Leu and Gly were observed in this lipase (named LN). The sequence, -Gly-His-Ser-Leu-Gly-, known as a lipase-specific consensus sequence of mould, was also found in LN. High level expression for recombinant lipase was achieved in Pichia pastoris GS115 under the control of strong AOX1 promoter. It was purified to homogeneity through only one step DEAE-Sepharose anion exchange chromatography and got activity of 1328 U/ml. The molecular mass of one single band of this lipase was estimated to be 33 kDa by SDS-PAGE. The enzyme was stable at 60 °C and kept 65% enzyme activity after 30 min incubation at 70 °C. It kept half-activity after incubated for 40 min at 80 °C. The optimum pH for enzyme activity was 9.0 and the lipase was stable from pH 8.0 to 12.0. Lipase activity was enhanced by Ca²⁺ and inhibited by Fe²⁺, Zn²⁺, K⁺, and Ag⁺. The cell-free enzyme hydrolyzed and synthesized esters efficiently, and the synthetic efficiency even reached 81.5%. The physicochemical and catalytic properties of the lipase are extensively investigated for its potential industrial applications.     

Purification and characterization of two thermostable protease fractions from Bacillus megaterium

Protease enzyme from Bacillus megaterium was successively purified by ammonium sulfate precipitation, ion exchange chromatography on DEAE-cellulose and gel filtration chromatography on Sephadex G-200. The purification steps of protease resulted in the production of two protease fractions namely protease P1 and P2 with specific activities of 561.27 and 317.23 U mg^?1 of protein, respectively. The molecular weights of B. megaterium P1 and P2 were 28 and 25 KDa, respectively. The purified fractions P1 and P2 were rich in aspartic acid and serine. Relatively higher amounts of alanine, leucine, glycine, valine, thereonine valine and glutamic acid were also present. The maximum protease activities for both enzyme fractions were attained at 50 °C, pH 7.5, 1% of gelatine concentration and 0.5 enzyme concentrations. P1 and P2 fractions were more stable over pH 7.0–8.5 and able to prolong their thermal stability up to 80 °C. The effect of different inhibitors on the protease activity of both enzyme fractions was also studied. The enzyme was found to be serine active as it had been affected by lower concentrations of phenylmethylsulfonyl fluoride (PMSF). Complete dehairing of the enzyme-treated skin was achieved in 12 h, at room temperature.     

Isolation and screening of Streptomyces sp. Al-Dhabi-49 from the environment of Saudi Arabia with concomitant production of lipase and protease in submerged fermentation

In this study, Streptomyces sp. Al-Dhabi-49 was isolated from the soil sample of Saudi Arabian environment for the simultaneous production of lipase and protease in submerged fermentation. The process parameters were optimized to enhance enzymes production. The production of protease and lipase was found to be maximum after 5 days of incubation (139.2 ± 2.1 U/ml, 253 ± 4.4 U/ml). Proteolytic enzyme increases with the increase in pH up to 9.0 (147.2 ± 3.6 U/ml) and enzyme production depleted significantly at higher pH values. In the case of lipase, production was maximum in the culture medium containing pH 8.0 (166 ± 1.3 U/ml). The maximum production of protease was observed at 40 °C (174 ± 12.1 U/ml) by Streptomyces sp. Lipase activity was found to be optimum at the range of temperatures (30–50 °C) and maximum production was achieved at 35 °C (168 ± 7.8 U/ml). Among the evaluated carbon sources, maltose significantly influenced on protease production (218 ± 12.8 U/ml). Lipase production was maximum when Streptomyces sp. was cultured in the presence of glucose (162 ± 10.8U/ml). Among various concentrations of peptone, 1.0% (w/v) significantly enhanced protease production. The lipase production was very high in the culture medium containing malt extract as nitrogen source (86 ± 10.2 U/ml). Protease production was maximum in the presence of Ca²⁺ as ionic source (212 ± 3.8 U/ml) and lipase production was enhanced by the addition of Mg²⁺ with the fermentation medium (163.7 ± 6.2 U/ml).     

An organic solvent and thermally stable lipase from Burkholderia ambifaria YCJ01: Purification,characteristics and application for chiral resolution of mandelic acid

A solvent-tolerant bacterium Burkholderia ambifaria YCJ01 was newly isolated by DMSO enrichment of the medium. The lipase from the strain YCJ01 was purified to homogeneity with apparent molecular mass of 34 kDa determined by SDS-PAGE. The purified lipase exhibited maximal activity at a temperature of 60 °C and a pH of 7.5. The lipase was very stable below 55 °C for 7 days (remaining 80.3% initial activity) or at 30 °C for 60 days. PMSF significantly inhibited the lipase activity, while EDTA had no effect on the activity. Strikingly, the lipase showed distinct super-stability to the most tested hydrophilic and hydrophobic solvents (25%, v/v) for 60 days, and different optimal pH in contrast with the alkaline lipase from B. cepacia S31. The lipase demonstrated excellent enantioselective transesterification toward the S-isomer of mandelic acid with a theoretical conversion yield of 50%, ee_p of 99.9% and ee_s of 99.9%, which made it an exploitable biocatalyst for organic synthesis and pharmaceutical industries.     

An organic solvent–tolerant lipase from Streptomyces sp. CS133 for enzymatic transesterification of vegetable oils in organic media

The enzymatic route for biodiesel production has been noted to be cost ineffective due to the high cost of biocatalysts. Reusing the biocatalyst for successive transesterification cycles is a potential solution to address such cost inefficiency. However, when organic solvent like methanol is used as acyl-acceptor in the reaction, the biocatalyst (lipase) gets severely inactivated due to the inhibitory effect of undissolved methanol in the reaction medium. Thus, organic solvent–tolerant lipase is highly desirable for enzymatic transesterification. In response to such desirability, a lipase (LS133) possessing aforesaid characteristic was extracted from Streptomyces sp. CS133. Relative molecular mass of the purified LS133 was estimated to be 39.8 kDa by SDS-PAGE. Lipase LS133 was stable in pH range 5.0–9.0 and at temperature lower than 50 °C while its optimum lipolytic activity was achieved at pH 7.5 and 40 °C. It showed the highest hydrolytic activity towards long chain p-nitrophenyl palmitate with K_m and V_max values of 0.152 mM and 270.2 mmol min^?1 mg^?1, respectively. It showed non-position specificity for triolein hydrolysis. The first 15 amino acid residues of its N-terminal sequence, AIPLRQTLNFQAXYQ, were noted to have partial similarity with some of the previously reported microbial lipases. Its catalytic involvement in biodiesel production process was confirmed by performing enzymatic transesterification of vegetable oils with methanol.     

High activity and selectivity immobilized lipase on Fe3O4 nanoparticles for banana flavour synthesis

Lipase (E.C.3.1.1.3) from Thermomyces lanuginosus (TL) was directly bonded, through multiple physical interactions, on citric acid functionalized monodispersed Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles (NPs) in presence of a small amount of hydrophobic functionalities. A very promising scalable synthetic approach ensuring high control and reproducibility of the results, and an easy and green immobilization procedure was chosen for NPs synthesis and lipase anchoring. The size and structure of magnetic nanoparticles were characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The samples at different degree of functionalization were analysed through thermogravimetric measurements. Lipase immobilization was further confirmed by enzymatic assay and Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectra. Immobilized lipase showed a very high activity recovery up to 144% at pH = 7 and 323% at pH = 7.5 (activity of the immobilized enzyme compared to that of its free form). The enzyme, anchored to the Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles, to be easy recovered and reused, resulted more stable than the native counterpart and useful to produce banana flavour. The immobilized lipase results less sensitive to the temperature and pH, with the optimum temperature higher of 5 °C and optimum pH up shifted to 7.5 (free lipase optimum pH = 7.0). After 120 days, free and immobilized lipases retained 64% and 51% of their initial activity, respectively. Ester yield at 40 °C for immobilized lipase reached 88% and 100% selectivity.     

An extracellular solvent stable alkaline lipase from Pseudomonas sp. DMVR46: Partial purification,characterization and application in non-aqueous environment

The biosynthesis of esters is currently of much commercial interest because of the increasing popularity and demand for natural products among consumers. Biotransformation and enzymatic methods of ester synthesis are more effective when performed in non-aqueous media. In present study, an organic solvent stable Pseudomonas sp. DMVR46 lipase was partially purified by acetone precipitation and ion exchange chromatography with 28.95-fold purification. The molecular mass of the lipase was found to be ∼32 kDa. The partially purified lipase was optimally active at 37 °C and pH 8.5. The enzyme showed greater stability toward organic solvents such as isooctane, cyclohexane and n-hexane retaining more than 70% of its initial activity. The metal ions such as Ca²⁺, Ba²⁺ and Mg²⁺ had stimulatory effects on lipase activity, whereas Co²⁺ and Zn²⁺ strongly inhibited the activity. Also lipase exhibited variable specificity/hydrolytic activity toward different 4-nitrophenyl esters. DMVR46 lipase was further immobilized into AOT-based organogels used for the synthesis of flavor ester pentyl valerate in presence of organic solvents. The organogels showed repeated use of enzyme with meager loss of activity even upto 10 cycles. The solvent-stable lipase DMVR46 thus proved to be an efficient catalyst showing an attractive potency for application in biocatalysis under non-aqueous environment.