L-Asparaginase from Microbes: a Comprehensive Review

One of the prime candidates in the treatment of debilitating human cancers includes a family of enzymes referred to as Lasparaginases. The efficacious antitumor activity of these enzymes finds use in countering Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL), a commonly diagnosed pediatric cancer. The enzyme's use is merited by the high remission rate and fairly rapid response with therapeutic index (1000). However, the downside to the use of this enzyme is the huge expenses involved in the treatment coupled with a high demand. Therefore, a great deal of interest has emerged in studying the possibilities of harnessing potential microorganisms that house this enzyme. Appropriate characterizations with low toxicity, less hypersensitivity without side effects are required for a large scale production. This review, hence, mainly focuses on the biochemical aspects of L-asparaginase production, aiming to comprehend the physiochemical characteristics, application and assay methods of L-asparaginase, enzyme properties and kinetics of recombinant enzyme production by fermentation. Processes central to these biochemical aspects, including Submerged Fermentation and Solid State Fermentation of Lasparaginase producing organisms and downstream processing of the enzyme are also discussed.