Oxidoreductase mediated enzymatic treatment of textile dye wastewater

The textile industry generates vast quantities of dye-contaminated wastewater, posing risks to environmental sustainability and human health. Conventional treatment methods are often energy-intensive, expensive, and cause secondary pollution; hence, environmentally friendly alternatives are required to replace them. However, a critical gap exists in the current literature regarding the mechanistic distinction between decolorization and complete detoxification, the operational barriers to industrial scale-up, and the untapped potential of extremophilic microorganisms as robust enzyme sources. Enzymatic treatment using oxidoreductases, such as laccases, manganese peroxidases, and lignin peroxidases, has emerged as a promising and environmentally friendly method for reducing structurally complex dyes into less hazardous compounds. These enzymes are derived from a wide range of microbial and extremophilic sources and are characterized by their broad substrate specificity and high catalytic efficiency at ambient temperatures and near-neutral pH. Recent advances in enzyme engineering, immobilization strategies, and bioreactor design have further enhanced the stability, reusability, and industrial relevance of these biocatalysts. Unlike prior reviews that primarily focus on the performance of enzymatic decolorization, this study contextualizes oxidoreductase-based treatment within a systems-level framework. This highlights the gap between decolorization and detoxification and identifies the process-level barriers that impede the industrial-scale application of enzyme-based systems. This review proposes an integrated treatment architecture in which enzymatic oxidation serves as a core transformation process rather than a standalone solution, bridging the gap between laboratory findings and real-world applications of enzymatic oxidation.