: The variety of microorganisms represents the most prevalent sources utilized within diverse industries and research fields. Enzymes with microorganisms are applied in the use of industrial biotechnology. Since the dawn of civilization, there are techniques like extraction and fermentation that use plant or bacterial enzymes as well as other byproducts. Enzymes, the natural catalysts, are intricately involved in many aspects of life. Enzymes pose remarkable specificity for their substrate, which implies that these metabolic cycles in a living cell need to be executed by a team working in collaboration. The major sources of these enzymes are yeast, some fungi and bacteria. Just like all living forms, microbes interact with their environment in which they must live in order to survive. A large number of microorganisms that are capable of producing great varieties of enzymes are important in the production of bread, cheese, yogurt, beer, and many other foods. One of the most widely used lipolytic enzyme is lipase from various sources including food and dairy industry, leather, detergent, pulp and paper, bioenergy and even pharma. With the latest innovation in biotechnology, the need for organisms that produce different commercially important lipases which other strains of lipases do is increasing. Lipases produced from microbial cells have a major industrial significance because of their property of versatility and ease of mass production. This review seeks to clarify the sources of microorganisms, lipase production and purification processes, as well as the environmental and industrial uses of lipase enzymes. One-Sentence Summary: This manuscript explores the diverse microbial sources of lipase, their production processes and the crucial applications in industries such as food, pharmaceuticals, and biofuels.

Globally, escalating soil salinization poses significant abiotic stress, disproportionately impacting crops like chickpea (Cicer arientinum L.). This legume exhibits high sensitivity to salinity, which disrupts various physiological and metabolic processes, ultimately hindering growth and productivity. AMF (arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus) reduces salt’s detrimental effects on plants’ growth by bolstering the plant’s antioxidant defense system, effectively reducing the damage caused by oxidative stress. In this study, the impact of AMF on salinity stress alleviation in chickpea was investigated in pot-grown experiments. Rhizophagus fasciculatus was used to inoculate the seeds of three different chickpea varieties (HC-3, CSG-8962, and C-235), and the physiological and biochemical changes of the AMF-inoculated and non-inoculated chickpea plants were studied. When exposed to salinity stress, the plants exhibited decreased leaf relative water content (RWC %) (21.13–31.30%), increased leaf relative stress injury, decreased chlorophyll content (45.22–58.24%), photochemical quantum yield, photosynthetic rate, transpiration rate, and stomatal conductance as compared to the control plants, but opposite results were observed in AMF colonized plants. A 9.16% to 14.79% increase in chlorophyll content was reported after AMF colonization. The activities of antioxidant enzymes such as superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and peroxidase (POX) were increased by salt stress. They were further enhanced by AMF inoculation SOD activity by 20.3% to 23.3%, CAT activity by 65.7% to 78.7%, and POX activity by 32.7% to 39.3%. The findings clearly show that AMF Rhizophagus fasciculatus, via enhancing RWC, photosynthetic parameters, and antioxidant enzymes, can mitigate salinity stress in chickpeas.

Bio-transformations refer to the chemical modifications made by an organism on a chemical compound that often involves the interaction of plants with microbes to alter the chemical composition of soil or plant. Integrating bio-transformations and entomopathogenic fungi into litchi cultivation can enhance symbiotic relationships, microbial enzymatic activity in rhizosphere, disease suppression and promote overall plant health. The integration of biological formulations and entomopathogenic fungi can significantly influence growth, nutrient dynamics, physiology, and rhizosphere microbiome of air-layered litchi (Litchi chinensis Sonn.) saplings. Biological modifications included, K-mobilizers, AM fungi, Pseudomonas florescence and Azotobacter chroococcum along with Metarhizium, entomopathogenic fungi have been used. The treatments included, T1-Litchi orchard soil + sand (1:1); T2-Sand + AM fungi + Azotobacter chroococcum (1:2:1); T3-Sand + Pseudomonas florecence + K-mobilizer (1:1:1); T4- AM fungi + K-mobilizers (1:1); T5, P. Florecence + A. chroococcum + K-mobilizer (1:1:1); T6-Sand + P. florecence (1:2) and T7-Uninoculated control for field performance. Treatments T4-T6 were further uniformly amended with drenching of Metarrhizium in rhizosphere. T2 application significantly increased resident microbe survival, total chlorophyll content and root soil ratio in seedlings. A. chroococcum, Pseudomonas, K-mobilizers and AM fungi increased in microbial biomass of 2.59, 3.39, 2.42 and 2.77 times, respectively. Acidic phosphatases, dehydrogenases and alkaline phosphatases were increased in rhizosphere. Leaf nutrients reflected through DOP were considerably altered by T2 treatment. Based on Eigen value, PCA-induced changes at biological modifications showed maximum total variance. The study inferred that the bio-transformations through microbial inoculants and entomopathogenic fungi could be an encouraging strategy to enhance the growth of plants, health and productivity. Such practices align well with the goals of sustainable agriculture through biological means by reducing dependency on chemical inputs. By delving into these aspects, the research gaps including microbial processes, competitive and symbiotic relationships, resistance in microbes and how complex interactions among bio-transformations, entomopathogenic fungi and microbes can significantly impact the health and productivity of litchi. Understanding and harnessing these interactions can lead to more effective and sustainable farming practices.