InterPro domain: IPR044846

O-Glycosyl hydrolases ( 3.2.1. ) are a widespread group of enzymes that hydrolyse the glycosidic bond between two or more carbohydrates, or between a carbohydrate and a non-carbohydrate moiety. A classification system for glycosyl hydrolases, based on sequence similarity, has led to the definition of 85 different families [ 1 , 2 ]. This classification is available on the CAZy (CArbohydrate-Active EnZymes) website.

Glycoside hydrolase family 10 GH10 comprises enzymes with a number of known activities; xylanase ( 3.2.1.8 ); endo-1,3-beta-xylanase ( 3.2.1.32 ); cellobiohydrolase ( 3.2.1.91 ). These enzymes were formerly known as cellulase family F.

The microbial degradation of cellulose and xylans requires several types of enzymes such as endoglucanases ( 3.2.1.4 ), cellobiohydrolases ( 3.2.1.91 ) (exoglucanases), or xylanases ( 3.2.1.8 ) [ 3 , 4 ]. Fungi and bacteria produces a spectrum of cellulolytic enzymes (cellulases) and xylanases which, on the basis of sequence similarities, can be classified into families. One of these families is known as the cellulase family F [ 5 ] or as the glycosyl hydrolases family 10 [ 6 ].

1. Conserved catalytic machinery and the prediction of a common fold for several families of glycosyl hydrolases. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 92, 7090-4
2. Structures and mechanisms of glycosyl hydrolases. Structure 3, 853-9
3. Molecular biology of cellulose degradation. Annu. Rev. Microbiol. 44, 219-48
4. Domains in microbial beta-1, 4-glycanases: sequence conservation, function, and enzyme families. Microbiol. Rev. 55, 303-15
5. Cellulase families revealed by hydrophobic cluster analysis. Gene 81, 83-95
6. A classification of glycosyl hydrolases based on amino acid sequence similarities. Biochem. J. 280 ( Pt 2), 309-16