Chitinases (EC3.2.1.14, chitodextrinase, 1,4-β-poly-N-acetylglucosaminidase, poly-β-glucosaminidase, β-1,4-poly-N-acetyl glucosamidinase, poly[1,4-(N-acetyl-β-D-glucosaminide)] glycanohydrolase, (1→4)-2-acetamido-2-deoxy-β-D-glucan glycanohydrolase; systematic name (1→4)-2-acetamido-2-deoxy-β-D-glucan glycanohydrolase) are hydrolytic enzymes that break down glycosidic bonds in chitin.[1] They catalyse the following reaction:
Random endo-hydrolysis of N-acetyl-β-D-glucosaminide (1→4)-β-linkages in chitin and chitodextrins
As chitin is a component of the cell walls of fungi and exoskeletal elements of some animals (including mollusks and arthropods), chitinases are generally found in organisms that either need to reshape their own chitin[2] or dissolve and digest the chitin of fungi or animals.
^Jollès P, Muzzarelli RA (1999). Chitin and Chitinases. Basel: Birkhäuser. ISBN978-3-7643-5815-0.