4 Medicinal Enzymes in Papaya

All parts of the papaya plant are rich in protease enzymes. These compounds exist to offer services to papaya plants, but they also provide several benefits to human beings and animals. Enzymes in papaya differ from other plant enzymes in that they are chemically stable at high temperatures. This makes them ideal for use in medicine, in which they may need to be heated to sterilizing temperatures, and in the culinary arts, in which they are used as meat tenderizers.

The following four enzymes are found in papaya fruit.

Papain

The protease enzyme known as papain is the most widely researched and utilized enzyme found in papaya, although it is only found in papaya fruit in trace amounts. This enzyme in papaya is a primary ingredient in meat tenderizer because it breaks down the proteins in meat. Additionally, papain is used as an over-the-counter home remedy to treat insect stings, minor skin conditions, burns, sprains and arthritis.

Chymopapain

If you think papaya enzyme is only used in alternative medicine, think again. Chymopapain, another enzyme found in papaya fruit, is used extensively in conventional medicine to treat herniated disk (slipped disk), a common and painful condition of the spine. After giving a patient a local anesthetic, physicians will inject chymopapain into a herniated disk. The enzyme dissolves the inflamed area and relives pressure on surrounding disks.

CaricainAlso known as papaya peptidase II, caricain digests protein by breaking peptide bonds. When compared to other enzymes found in papaya, caricain is considered to be extremely alkaline. Like other papaya enzymes, caricain is anti-inflammatory and effective in breaking complex proteins into simpler amino acids. Caricain is effective in digesting the milk protein casein, so papaya enzyme supplements may offer help to people with sensitivities to hard-to-digest milk products.

Glycyl Endopeptidase

The papaya-sourced enzyme glycyl endopeptidase differs from papain and chymopapain is not used extensively as an isolated medicine or food ingredient, but it is responsible for many of the benefits of papaya enzme supplements. Glycyl endopeptise is extremely effective in digesting protein because it resists cystatins, which are natural molecules that hinder the effectiveness of protein-digesting enzymes.