Methyl acetate hydrolase, known also as ''methylacetate acetohydrolase'' is a

hydrolase In biochemistry, hydrolases constitute a class of enzymes that commonly function as biochemical catalysts that use water to break a chemical bond: :\ce \quad \xrightarrowtext\quad \ce This typically results in dividing a larger molecule into s ...

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 ...

that utilizes to carry out the

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 reaction, substitution, elimination reaction, elimination, and solvation reactions in which water ...

methyl acetate Methyl acetate, also known as MeOAc, acetic acid methyl ester or methyl ethanoate, is a carboxylate ester with the formula CH3COOCH3. It is a flammable liquid with a characteristically pleasant smell reminiscent of some glues and nail polish remo ...

(CH₃COOCH₃), a weakly lipophillic and polar compound used often as a

solvent A solvent (from the Latin language, Latin ''wikt:solvo#Latin, solvō'', "loosen, untie, solve") is a substance that dissolves a solute, resulting in a Solution (chemistry), solution. A solvent is usually a liquid but can also be a solid, a gas ...

. In the species '' Gordonia sp.'' (strain TY-5), the enzyme is encoded by gene ''acMB''. The enzyme catalyzes the following reaction, :

+ =

methanol Methanol (also called methyl alcohol and wood spirit, amongst other names) is an organic chemical compound and the simplest aliphatic Alcohol (chemistry), alcohol, with the chemical formula (a methyl group linked to a hydroxyl group, often ab ...

acetate An acetate is a salt formed by the combination of acetic acid with a base (e.g. alkaline, earthy, metallic, nonmetallic, or radical base). "Acetate" also describes the conjugate base or ion (specifically, the negatively charged ion called ...

+ H⁺ The enzyme is involved in two major pathways, the butanoate metabolism pathway and the catabolic degradation pathway of

propanol There are two isomers of propanol. * 1-Propanol, ''n''-propanol, or propan-1-ol: CH3CH2CH2OH, the most common meaning *2-Propanol, isopropyl alcohol, isopropanol, or propan-2-ol: (CH3)2CHOH See also * Propanal (propionaldehyde) differs in spel ...

References

{{reflist Hydrolases Enzymes