Enzymes are (predominantly) proteins which catalyse specific biochemical reactions. The mechanism of action consists of the interaction of an enzyme substrate with the enzyme active site, which leads to the acceleration of the chemical reaction of the substrate to a final product.
The enzymes are grouped in 6 major classes: oxidoreductases, transferases, hydrolases, lyases, isomerases, ligases and translocases. Enzymes are key drivers of cell metabolism across all kingdoms of life and are also extensively used as tools in life science research, in therapeutics, diagnostic and bioprocessing applications.
Oxidoreductases
Oxidoreductases catalyse the transfer of electrons from one molecule (oxidant) to another (reductant). This class of enzymes is large, making up approximately one third of third of all activities recorded, and include oxidases, peroxidases and catalases.
Oxidoreductases also include luciferases, oxidative enzymes that produce bioluminescence by incorporating molecular oxygen. There are a range of luciferases from different sources available, including our novel, robust novel X-Shining™ Luciferase.
Transferases
Transferases catalyse the transfer of a functional group from one molecule (donor) to another (acceptor). This specific functional group that is transferred (phosphoryl, methyl, glycosyl etc.) form the category grouping for these enzymes (methyltransferases, phosphorylases etc) and are generally named by donor then acceptor group.
Hydrolases
Hydrolases catalyse the breaking of a chemical bond using water, which generally splits the target molecule into smaller components. The subclasses of hydrolases are based on the type of bond that they act upon such as peptide bonds (proteases, peptidases) or esters (esterases, lipases, nucleases).
Lyases
Lyases catalyse the breaking of a chemical bond between a carbon atom and another atom (Oxygen, Sulphur, Carbon) by means other than using water (hydrolysis, as used by hydrolases), or oxidation. This is termed an elimination reaction and can lead to new bond formation and a new product. For important products the lyase may be name product-synthase rather than substrate-lysase.
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