Product Name

Chitinase from Trichoderma viride

Synonym

N-acetyl-β-glucosaminidase and chitodextrinase

Assay

≥600 units/g solid

MDL number

MFCD00130771

Suitability

BioReagent

l Physical and Chemical Information

Appearance

Tan lyophilized powder

Solubility(25°C)

0.05 M phosphate buffer, pH 6.0: soluble 0.90-1.10 mg/mL, faintly hazy to hazy (with particles)

l Biological Information

Biochem/Physiol Actions

Chitinase is a 30 kDa (approx.) extracellular enzyme complex that degrades chitin. Chitin is degraded to N-acetyl-D-glucosamine in 2 enzymatic reactions. Firstly, chitobiose units are removed from chitin by chitodextrinase-chitinase, a poly(1,4-β-[2-acetamido-2-deoxy-D-glucoside])-glycanohydrolase. The second reaction involves N-acetyl-glucosaminidase-chitobiase, which cleaves the disaccharide to its monomer subunits of N-acetyl-D-glucosamine. The enzyme may be classified into endo- and exochitinase. The endochitinase activity involves random cleavage at internal points in the chitin chain. The exochitinase activity consists of a progressive action which starts at the non-reducing end of chitin and releases chitobiose or N-acetyl-glucosamine units. The chitinolytic enzymes from T. viride are a mixture of extracellular chitinolytic enzymes, which exhibit exo- and endochitinase activities. The major activity was found to be that of N-acetyl-β-glucosaminidase.

Application

Chitinase from Trichoderma viride has been used in a study to investigate the differential release of high mannose structural isoforms by fungal and bacterial endo-β-N-acetylglucosaminidases. Chitinase from Trichoderma viride has also been used in a study to investigate a hevein-like protein and a class I chitinase with antifungal activity from leaves of the paper mulberry.

Chitinase from Trichoderma viride has been used to digest chitin in purified sponge spicules during the study of sponge skeletons.

Preparation Note

The product is soluble in phosphate buffer, pH 6.1, (1 mg/mL), yielding a clear to faint hazy, tan solution. One publication reports preparation of stock solutions of this product at 20 mg/mL in 20 mM sodium phosphate buffer, pH 7.7 Another publication reports preparation of stock solutions of this product at 20 mg/mL, in a buffer of 20 mM sodium citrate with 1 M sorbitol, pH 5.8. 8 We have not tested either condition.

Unit Definition

One unit will liberate 1.0 mg of N-acetyl-D-glucosamine from chitin per hour at pH 6.0 at 25 °C in a 2 hour assay.

One new 1 hour unit = approx. 50 old 48 hour units.

l Storage

Storage temp.

-20°C

l Precautions and Disclaimer

This product is for R&D use only, not for drug, household, or other uses.

l References

1. http://www.drugbank.ca

2. https://ncit.nci.nih.gov

3. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov