Lignocellulolytic enzymes: Potential biocatalysts to pre-treat lignocellulosic biomass for its biotechnological and industrial applications

Abstract

Lignocellulosic biomass, otherwise considered waste from agricultural and forest areas, has found its potential application in various sectors such as biomedical, cosmeceutical, pharmaceutical sectors, etc. Moreover, they can be utilized to produce bioplastic and can be used as a sustainable alternative for energy production. However, the lignin content present in the lignocellulosic biomass poses a hindrance in its complete utilization. Therefore, to delignify the lignocellulosic biomass, traditionally, various physical and chemical pre-treatment methods have been introduced, which again are not only expensive but also prove to be hazardous for the environment as the chemical treatment of the lignocellulosic biomass may result in harmful end products. Hence, to eliminate these problems, research has now been focused on utilizing biological methods to delignify and detoxify the lignocellulosic biomass which includes various lignocellulosic enzymes such as laccase, lignin peroxidase, manganese peroxidase, and versatile peroxidase for its pretreatment. This chapter, therefore, aims to summarize the introduction of various lignocellulosic enzymes and their potential role in the pretreatment of the lignocellulosic biomass, in order to make the biomass applicable for various biotechnological and industrial applications as well as for the production of bioethanol. © 2024 Nova Science Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved.