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Glycoside hydrolase family GH80 is comprised of endo-acting β-1,4-chitosanases of bacterial origin. The first characterized member was from a proteobacterium [1] belonging to the Bacteroidetes/Chlorobi group [2, 3]. At present (July 2011), GH80 is very small family, comprised of fewer than 20 members.
Characterized GH80 members do not hydrolyze chitin or cellulose [1, 3], and for one member, the chitosan hexa-oligosaccharide (GlcN)6 is preferentially hydrolyzed into two molecules of the trisaccharide [4].
Kinetics and Mechanism
The stereochemistry of the hydrolytic reaction catalyzed by GH80 members has not yet been studied. However, sequence similarity with members of Clan GH-I suggests that these enzymes may operate with inversion of the anomeric configuration (see Catalytic Residues, below)
Catalytic Residues
The chitosanases from family GH80 share a PROSITE signature motif [5] with the chitosanases from family GH46 [6]. Together with GH24, these three families comprise clan GH-I [7].
A site-directed mutagenesis study of the chitosanase A from Matsuebacter chitosanotabidus 3001 (new name: Mitsuaria chitosanitabida [8]) identified two residues as essentiel for catalysis: Glu-121 (in the sequence YPENG)and Glu-141 (in the sequence DYEAA) [4].
Three-dimensional structures
No three-dimensional structure has yet been solved for this family. As a member of clan GH-I, a lysozyme-like α-β fold is suggested, based on known GH24 and GH46 structures.
Matsuda, Y., Iida, I., Shinogi, T., Kakutani, K., Nonomura, T., Toyoda, H. (2001) In vitro suppression of mycelial growth of Fusarium oxysporum by extracellular chitosanase of Sphingobacterium multivorum and cloning of the chitosanase gene csnSM1. J. Gen. Plant Pathol. 67, 318-324. [Matsuda2001]
Yi, J.-H., Jang, H.-K., Lee, S.-J., Lee, K.-E., Choi, S.-G. (2004) Purification and properties of chitosanase from chitinolytic beta-Proteobacterium KNU3. J. Microbiol. Biotechnol. 14, 337-343. [Yi2004]