α-Mannosidase (, ''α-D-mannosidase'', ''p-nitrophenyl-α-mannosidase'', ''α-D-mannopyranosidase'', ''1,2-α-mannosidase'', ''1,2-α-D-mannosidase'', ''exo-α-mannosidase'') is an

enzyme An enzyme () is a protein that acts as a biological catalyst by accelerating chemical reactions. The molecules upon which enzymes may act are called substrate (chemistry), substrates, and the enzyme converts the substrates into different mol ...

involved in the cleavage of the α form of

mannose Mannose is a sugar with the formula , which sometimes is abbreviated Man. It is one of the monomers of the aldohexose series of carbohydrates. It is a C-2 epimer of glucose. Mannose is important in human metabolism, especially in the glycosylatio ...

. Its

systematic name A systematic name is a name given in a systematic way to one unique group, organism, object or chemical substance, out of a specific population or collection. Systematic names are usually part of a nomenclature. A semisystematic name or semitrivi ...

is ''α-D-mannoside mannohydrolase''.

Isoenzymes

Humans express the following three α-mannosidase isoenzymes:

Applications

It can be utilized in experiments that determine the effects of the presence or absence of mannose on specific molecules, such as recombinant proteins that are used in vaccine development.

Pathology

A deficiency can lead to α-mannosidosis.

References

External links

GeneReviews/NCBI/NIH/UW entry on Alpha-Mannosidosis OMIM entries on Alpha-Mannosidosis
* EC 3.2.1 {{3.2-enzyme-stub