What is the Difference Between Cell Immobilization and Enzyme Immobilization?
🆚 Go to Comparative Table 🆚The main difference between cell immobilization and enzyme immobilization lies in the type of biological component being immobilized. Here are the key differences:
- Cell Immobilization: This technique involves fixing a whole cell, such as microbial, plant, or animal cells, as the immobilized particle. In cell immobilization, the cell's metabolism is stopped, preventing it from dying. An example of cell immobilization is agarose immobilization.
- Enzyme Immobilization: This technique involves fixing an enzyme as the immobilized particle. Enzyme immobilization is carried out in various forms, including lipases, proteases, penicillin G acylase, and invertase. In this process, only a single enzyme or protein molecule is immobilized, and it does not degrade, as all proteins have a lifespan.
Both cell and enzyme immobilization techniques involve anchoring the biological components on an inert support using methods such as adsorption, entrapment, encapsulation, covalent binding, and cross-linking. The choice between cell and enzyme immobilization depends on the specific application and requirements of the process.
Comparative Table: Cell Immobilization vs Enzyme Immobilization
Here is a table comparing cell immobilization and enzyme immobilization:
| Feature | Cell Immobilization | Enzyme Immobilization |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | A process where cells (plant, animal, or microbial) are fixed in a suitable matrix to immobilize them. | A process where enzymes are fixed to or within solid supports, creating a heterogeneous immobilized enzyme system. |
| Matrix | Mainly contains alginate, agarose, gelatin, and agar. | Mainly contains calcium alginate, agar, and collagen. |
| Examples | Agarose immobilization. | Lipases, proteases, penicillin G acylase, and invertase. |
| Advantages | Provides biochemical support and mechanical support for cell growth, allowing efficient function and reducing non-productive growth phase. | Provides more robust and resistant enzymes, allows easy recovery and multiple re-use of enzymes, continuous operation of enzymatic processes, rapid termination of reactions, and greater variety of bioreactor designs. |
| Applications | Immobilized cells can serve as multi-enzyme systems and are sometimes preferred for single reactions due to cost factors in isolating enzymes. | Immobilized enzymes are generally preferred over immobilized cells for specificity and yielding products in pure form. |
Cell immobilization involves fixing entire cells in a matrix, providing support for cell growth and function, while enzyme immobilization involves fixing enzymes to solid supports, creating a more robust and reusable enzyme system.
- Free vs Immobilized Enzymes
- Enzyme Activator vs Enzyme Inhibitor
- Enzyme Inhibitor vs Enzyme Inducer
- Catalyst vs Enzyme
- Intracellular vs Extracellular Enzymes
- Enzyme vs Protein
- Acid Hydrolysis vs Enzymatic Hydrolysis
- Metalloenzymes vs Metal Activated Enzymes
- Enzymatic vs Nonenzymatic Reaction
- Isomerase vs Mutase Enzyme
- Enzyme Activity vs Specific Activity
- Enzyme vs Hormone
- Enzyme vs Coenzyme
- Allosteric vs Non-allosteric Enzymes
- CRISPR vs Restriction Enzymes
- Exoenzyme vs Endoenzyme
- Allozymes vs Isozymes
- Anabolic vs Catabolic Enzymes
- Ribozymes vs Protein Enzymes