Biochemical reactions in living organisms can only occur without interference because Nature has evolved an immense variety of enzymes catalyzing these reactions. Many of the reaction products such as amino acids, sugars, alcohols, antibiotics and others are biotechnologically produced in the dimension of thousands of tons per year. The commercial value of such products reaches billions of dollars. Molecular enzyme biotechnology represents one of the most important disciplines in modern biotechnology, including isolated enzymes as well as the performance of entire microorganisms. For the life of microorganisms at interfaces, efficient enzymes are a prerequisite. On the other hand, many interfacial effects - wanted as well as unwanted - are influenced by enzymes. This is especially true for the degradation of particles, a process which is crucial for the self-cleaning of surface waters as well as for the performance of wastewater treatment plants. These enzymes are retained in the matrix of extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) with which they seem to positively interact; however, the nature of this interactions is widely unexplored, although there are hints about the protective and activating function of EPS components for extracellular enzymes. Another approach for the use of enzymes in biofilms is the attempt to dissolve the EPS matrix enzymatically. This can be of great importance for special applications.

The establishment of a department for Molecular Enzyme Biotechnology is useful in order to continue the efficient and successful work of the Institute for Interfacial Biotechnology. It is foreseen that this department will use the latest molecular biological methods including genome and proteome analyses, protein design and directed evolution in order to isolate, characterize and optimize genes encolding enzymes and (other) proteins for optimal biotechnological application. The focuses of the Department of Molecular Enzyme Technology will be: