Soil Enzymes and Their Role in Soil Health Improvement

Soil is the most vital part of terrestrial biota. Since all the related ecological communities thrive on it, the protection, maintenance and improvement of soil is of high importance. The quality of soil to function in a dynamic equilibrium with the thriving biosphere to sustain plant, animal and human life is now being considered as soil health. Assessment of soil quality solely depends on biological, chemical, physical indicators, as all of these contribute in maintaining soil health. The quality of soil can be evaluated directly by reviewing the soil enzymes. Soil enzymes are the fundamental factors of the soil system that are critical for the maintenance of ecosystem functioning and nutrient recycling. They have the capability of efficiently catalysing the decomposition of organic components in the soil system, which helps in maintaining the life processes of soil microorganisms and structural stabilization of soil. Enzymes present in soil are mostly of microbial origin, but can also be of plant or animal origin. These enzymes can be extracellular or intracellular depending on their location, and depending on their origin of derivation, they can be intracellular, free enzymes or cell-associated. There are vast number of enzymes that have great efficiency in soil improvement and maintenance of soil health. This chapter provides a detailed review of all the major soil enzymes and their activities in maintaining the health of soil and their prospective role in soil improvement.