Protein engineering of representative hydrolytic enzymes for remediation of organophosphates

• Covers directed evolution studies of organophosphorus (OP) degradation enzymes.
• OP degradation enzymes exhibit varying degrees of phosphotriesterase (PTE) activity.
• Studies seek to evolve enzymes with PTE activity for bioremediation of OP nerve agents.
• Medical applications include treatment of OP poisoning through enzymatic prophylaxis.
• Novel enzymes extracted from thermophilic hosts represent a future area of study.

Organophosphorus (OP) pesticides are highly effective insecticides used worldwide due to their low cost and ease of application. OP compounds also form the core of G-series and V-series neurotoxic warfare agents. The potential lethality of these compounds has led to research initiatives that identify and evolve promising OP degradation enzymes through protein engineering. Traits commonly targeted in these studies include enzymatic catalysis, stability, stereoselectivity, and substrate preference. Evolved OP degradation enzymes can then be used in applications that include enzymatic remediation of contaminated agricultural and industrial sites, development of biosensors for environmental monitoring, and the prevention of OP poisoning through biocatalytic prophylaxis. This review will discuss the recent protein engineering strategies and achievements made in the development of evolved broad-spectrum OP degradation enzymes. The potential applications of these enzymes and new avenues for acquiring novel templates for future studies will also be discussed.