The use of enzymes for laundry

Enzymes
The use of enzymes for laundry was introduced in 1913 by Otto Rohm. 
The first preparation was a pancreatic extract obtained from slaughtered animals, which was unstable against alkali and bleach. Only in the latter part of the century with the availability of thermally robust bacterial enzymes did this technology become mainstream.

Enzymes are required to degrade stubborn stains composed of proteins (milk, cocoa, blood, egg yolk, grass), fats (chocolate, fats, oils), starch (flour and potato stains), and cellulose (damaged cotton fibrils, vegetable and fruit stains). Each type of stain requires a different type of enzyme: proteases (savinase) for proteins, lipases for greases, α-amylases for carbohydrates, and cellulases for cellulose.