Proteases are ubiquitous enzymes, having significant physiological roles in both synthesis and degradation. The use of microbial proteases in food fermentation is an age-old process, which is today being successfully employed in other industries with the advent of ‘omics’ era and innovations in genetic and protein engineering approaches. Proteases have found application in industries besides food, like leather, textiles, detergent, waste management, agriculture, animal husbandry, cosmetics, and pharmaceutics. With the rising demands and applications, researchers are exploring various approaches to discover, redesign, or artificially synthesize enzymes with better applicability in the industrial processes. These enzymes offer a sustainable and environmentally safer option, besides possessing economic and commercial value. Various bacterial and fungal proteases are already holding a commercially pivotal role in the industry. The current review summarizes the characteristics and types of proteases, microbial source, their current and prospective applications in various industries, and future challenges. Promoting these biocatalysts will prove significant in betterment of the modern world.

蛋白酶是普遍存在的酶，在合成和降解中都具有重要的生理作用。微生物蛋白酶在食品发酵中的使用是一个古老的过程，如今随着“组学”时代的到来以及基因和蛋白质工程方法的创新，它已成功应用于其他行业。除食品外，蛋白酶还应用于皮革、纺织品、洗涤剂、废物管理、农业、畜牧业、化妆品和制药等行业。随着需求和应用的不断增加，研究人员正在探索各种方法来发现、重新设计或人工合成在工业过程中具有更好适用性的酶。除了具有经济和商业价值外，这些酶还提供了一种可持续且环境更安全的选择。各种细菌和真菌蛋白酶已经在该行业中发挥着商业上的关键作用。目前的综述总结了蛋白酶的特征和类型、微生物来源、它们在各个行业的当前和未来应用以及未来的挑战。推广这些生物催化剂将证明对改善现代世界具有重要意义。