An esterase is a

hydrolase Hydrolase is a class of enzyme that commonly perform as biochemical catalysts that use water to break a chemical bond, which typically results in dividing a larger molecule into smaller molecules. Some common examples of hydrolase enzymes are este ...

enzyme Enzymes () are proteins that act as biological catalysts by accelerating chemical reactions. The molecules upon which enzymes may act are called substrates, and the enzyme converts the substrates into different molecules known as products ...

that splits

ester In chemistry, an ester is a compound derived from an oxoacid (organic or inorganic) in which at least one hydroxyl group () is replaced by an alkoxy group (), as in the substitution reaction of a carboxylic acid and an alcohol. Glycerides a ...

s into an acid and an alcohol in a

chemical reaction A chemical reaction is a process that leads to the IUPAC nomenclature for organic transformations, chemical transformation of one set of chemical substances to another. Classically, chemical reactions encompass changes that only involve the pos ...

with

water Water (chemical formula ) is an Inorganic compound, inorganic, transparent, tasteless, odorless, and Color of water, nearly colorless chemical substance, which is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known living ...

called

hydrolysis Hydrolysis (; ) is any chemical reaction in which a molecule of water breaks one or more chemical bonds. The term is used broadly for substitution, elimination, and solvation reactions in which water is the nucleophile. Biological hydrolys ...

. A wide range of different esterases exist that differ in their substrate specificity, their

protein structure Protein structure is the three-dimensional arrangement of atoms in an amino acid-chain molecule. Proteins are polymers specifically polypeptides formed from sequences of amino acids, the monomers of the polymer. A single amino acid monom ...

, and their biological function.

EC classification/list of enzymes

* ''EC 3.1.1'': Carboxylic ester hydrolases **

Acetylesterase The enzyme acetylesterase () catalyzes the reaction :an acetic ester + H2O \rightleftharpoons an alcohol + acetate This enzyme belongs to the family of hydrolases, specifically those acting on carboxylic ester bonds. The systematic name A sys ...

(EC 3.1.1.6), splits off acetyl

groups A group is a number of persons or things that are located, gathered, or classed together. Groups of people * Cultural group, a group whose members share the same cultural identity * Ethnic group, a group whose members share the same ethnic ide ...

***

Cholinesterase The enzyme cholinesterase (EC 3.1.1.8, choline esterase; systematic name acylcholine acylhydrolase) catalyses the hydrolysis of choline-based esters: : an acylcholine + H2O = choline + a carboxylate Several of these serve as neurotransmitters ...

**** Acetylcholinesterase, inactivates the neurotransmitter acetylcholine **** Pseudocholinesterase, broad substrate specificity, found in the

blood plasma Blood plasma is a light amber-colored liquid component of blood in which blood cells are absent, but contains proteins and other constituents of whole blood in suspension. It makes up about 55% of the body's total blood volume. It is the intr ...

and in the

liver The liver is a major organ only found in vertebrates which performs many essential biological functions such as detoxification of the organism, and the synthesis of proteins and biochemicals necessary for digestion and growth. In humans, it ...

Pectinesterase Pectinesterase (EC 3.1.1.11; systematic name pectin pectylhydrolase) is a ubiquitous cell-wall-associated enzyme that presents several isoforms that facilitate plant cell wall modification and subsequent breakdown. It catalyzes the following reac ...

(EC 3.1.1.11), clarifies fruit juices * ''EC 3.1.2'': Thiolester hydrolases **

Thioesterase Thioesterases are enzymes which belong to the esterase family. Esterases, in turn, are one type of the several hydrolases known. Thioesterases exhibit esterase activity (splitting of an ester into acid and alcohol, in the presence of water) speci ...

***

Ubiquitin carboxy-terminal hydrolase L1 Ubiquitin carboxy-terminal hydrolase L1 (, ''ubiquitin C-terminal hydrolase'', ''UCH-L1'') is a deubiquitinating enzyme. Function UCH-L1 is a member of a gene family whose products hydrolyze small C-terminal adducts of ubiquitin to generate ...

* ''EC 3.1.3'':

Phosphoric monoester hydrolases Phosphoric monoester hydrolases (or phosphomonoesterases) are enzymes that catalyse the hydrolysis of O-P bonds by Nucleophilic substitution, nucleophilic attack of phosphorus by cysteine residues or coordinated metal ions. They are categorized wit ...

** Phosphatase (EC 3.1.3.x), hydrolyses phosphoric acid monoesters into a

phosphate In chemistry, a phosphate is an anion, salt, functional group or ester derived from a phosphoric acid. It most commonly means orthophosphate, a derivative of orthophosphoric acid . The phosphate or orthophosphate ion is derived from phosph ...

ion and an alcohol *** Alkaline phosphatase, removes phosphate groups from many types of molecules, including nucleotides, proteins, and alkaloids. ***

Phosphodiesterase A phosphodiesterase (PDE) is an enzyme that breaks a phosphodiester bond. Usually, ''phosphodiesterase'' refers to cyclic nucleotide phosphodiesterases, which have great clinical significance and are described below. However, there are many ot ...

(PDE), inactivates the second messenger

cAMP Camp may refer to: Outdoor accommodation and recreation * Campsite or campground, a recreational outdoor sleeping and eating site * a temporary settlement for nomads * Camp, a term used in New England, Northern Ontario and New Brunswick to descri ...

**** cGMP specific phosphodiesterase type 5, is inhibited by Sildenafil (Viagra) ** Fructose bisphosphatase (3.1.3.11), converts fructose-1,6-bisphosphate to fructose-6-phosphate in gluconeogenesis * ''EC 3.1.4'': Phosphoric diester hydrolases * ''EC 3.1.5'': Triphosphoric monoester hydrolases * ''EC 3.1.6'': Sulfuric ester hydrolases ( sulfatases) * ''EC 3.1.7'': Diphosphoric monoester hydrolases * ''EC 3.1.8'': Phosphoric triester hydrolases * Exonucleases (

deoxyribonuclease Deoxyribonuclease (DNase, for short) refers to a group of glycoprotein endonucleases which are enzymes that catalyze the hydrolytic cleavage of phosphodiester linkages in the DNA backbone, thus degrading DNA. The role of the DNase enzyme in cells ...

s and

ribonuclease Ribonuclease (commonly abbreviated RNase) is a type of nuclease that catalyzes the degradation of RNA into smaller components. Ribonucleases can be divided into endoribonucleases and exoribonucleases, and comprise several sub-classes within ...

s) ** ''EC 3.1.11'': Exodeoxyribonucleases producing 5'-phosphomonoesters ** ''EC 3.1.13'':

Exoribonucleases An exoribonuclease is an exonuclease ribonuclease, which are enzymes that degrade RNA by removing terminal nucleotides from either the 5' end or the 3' end of the RNA molecule. Enzymes that remove nucleotides from the 5' end are called ''5'-3' ex ...

producing 5'-phosphomonoesters ** ''EC 3.1.14'':

producing 3'-phosphomonoesters ** ''EC 3.1.15'': Exonucleases active with either ribo- or deoxy- * Endonucleases (

s and

s) **

Endodeoxyribonuclease Endodeoxyribonuclease are both endonucleases and deoxyribonucleases. They catalyze cleavage of the phosphodiester bonds in DNA. They are classified with EC numbers 3.1.21 through 3.1.25. Examples include: * DNA restriction enzymes * micrococcal ...

Endoribonuclease An endoribonuclease is a ribonuclease endonuclease. It cleaves either single-stranded or double-stranded RNA, depending on the enzyme. Example includes both single proteins such as RNase III, RNase A, RNase T1, RNase T2 and RNase H and also com ...

** either deoxy- or ribo-

External links

Enzyme nomenclature
{{Portal bar, Biology, border=no Enzymes Esters Neurophysiology

EC classification/list of enzymes

See also

External links