Abstract Lipases are biocatalysts that may have distinct biochemical characteristics depending on the source. The combination of lipases from different sources with complementary characteristics is a viable strategy for increasing the enzymatic activity. In this study, fungal (Aspergillus niger 01 - CBMAI 2084) and plant (orange frit – orange peel fragment) lipases were analyzed separately and together in different concentrations. In addition, we evaluated the influence of organic solvents and ultrasonic effect on lipase activity, as well as substrate specificity [p-nitrophenyl butyrate (pNPB), p-nitrophenyl-laurate (pNPL) and p-nitrophenyl-palmitate (p-NPP)] and enzymatic immobilization in different supports (celite, silica, aluminum oxide, Lewatti, calcium alginate and gelatin). Increased enzyme activity was observed in formulations with higher concentration of fungal extract. The combination of 50% fungal extract and 25% plant extract increased about 55% lipase activity, showed the highest absolute lipase activity among all combinations and was selected for the following study. Plant extract showed the highest lipase activity in the hydrolysis of p-NPB and p-NPL, however, fungal extract showed the highest hydrolytic activity on p-NPP. When applied to synthetic substrates, the combination of plant and fungal extracts showed less stability and activity in synthetic substrates than isolated extracts, however lipase activity increased after 20s on ultrasound bath. Regarding to immobilization techniques, the adsorption on silica was the most efficient for all lipase extracts.

Abstract The global food loss and waste is the most urgent research area in food science to attend the current demand for more sustainable and profitable processes. Along the productive chain about 1/3 of the food is lost or wasted, this number reaches 1/2 for fruit and vegetable production in developing countries. Brazil has been investing in researches aiming to turn its wastes into byproducts, as biomolecules of high value such as lipases. These enzymes are found in a high diversity of plant sources and their researches are covered by promising market growth expectations due to the current demand for biofuels and bio-transformed food. Thus, the aim of the present study is to discuss the potential of wastes generated by the Brazilian fruit processing to become a source of lipases, by the analysis of the most recent studies on fruit lipases, as well as the inclusion of this process in the biorefinery concept. According to this concept, different products can be obtained from the same raw material. Considering the confirmation of the presence of lipases on fruit wastes, the annual fruit production and the percentage of residues, the assessed data showed that wastes from the processing of orange, mango, papaya and palmare promising for lipase obtainment.