A ureohydrolase is a type of

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. The ureohydrolase superfamily includes arginase (), agmatinase (), formiminoglutamase () and proclavaminate amidinohydrolase (). These enzymes share a 3-layer alpha-beta-alpha structure, and play important roles in arginine/agmatine metabolism, the urea cycle, histidine degradation, and other pathways.

Arginase Arginase (, ''arginine amidinase'', ''canavanase'', ''L-arginase'', ''arginine transamidinase'') is a manganese-containing enzyme. The reaction catalyzed by this enzyme is: : arginine + H2O → ornithine + urea It is the final enzyme of the ure ...

, which catalyses the conversion of arginine to urea and ornithine, is one of the five members of the urea cycle enzymes that convert ammonia to urea as the principal product of nitrogen excretion. There are several arginase isozymes that differ in catalytic, molecular and immunological properties. Deficiency in the liver isozyme leads to argininemia, which is usually associated with hyperammonemia. Agmatinase hydrolyses agmatine to putrescine, the precursor for the biosynthesis of higher polyamines, spermidine and spermine. In addition, agmatine may play an important regulatory role in mammals. Formiminoglutamase catalyses the fourth step in histidine degradation, acting to hydrolyse N-formimidoyl-L-glutamate to

L-glutamate Glutamic acid (symbol Glu or E; the ionic form is known as glutamate) is an α-amino acid that is used by almost all living beings in the biosynthesis of proteins. It is a non-essential nutrient for humans, meaning that the human body can syn ...

and

formamide Formamide is an amide derived from formic acid. It is a colorless liquid which is miscible with water and has an ammonia-like odor. It is chemical feedstock for the manufacture of sulfa drugs and other pharmaceuticals, herbicides and pesticides, a ...

. Proclavaminate amidinohydrolase is involved in clavulanic acid biosynthesis. Clavulanic acid acts as an inhibitor of a wide range of beta-lactamase enzymes that are used by various microorganisms to resist beta-lactam antibiotics. As a result, this enzyme improves the effectiveness of beta-lactamase antibiotics.

References

Hydrolases {{Hydrolase-stub