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Hyaluronidase PH-20 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 ...
that in humans is encoded by the ''SPAM1''
gene In biology, the word gene has two meanings. The Mendelian gene is a basic unit of heredity. The molecular gene is a sequence of nucleotides in DNA that is transcribed to produce a functional RNA. There are two types of molecular genes: protei ...
.
Hyaluronidase Hyaluronidases are a family of enzymes that catalyse the degradation of hyaluronic acid. Karl Meyer classified these enzymes in 1971, into three distinct groups, a scheme based on the enzyme reaction products. The three main types of hyaluroni ...
degrades
hyaluronic acid Hyaluronic acid (; abbreviated HA; conjugate base hyaluronate), also called hyaluronan, is an anionic, nonsulfated glycosaminoglycan distributed widely throughout connective, epithelial, and neural tissues. It is unique among glycosaminog ...
, a major structural proteoglycan found in extracellular matrices and basement membranes. Six members of the hyaluronidase family are clustered into two tightly linked groups on chromosome 3p21.3 and 7q31.3. This gene was previously referred to as HYAL1 and HYA1 and has since been assigned the official symbol SPAM1; another family member on chromosome 3p21.3 has been assigned HYAL1. This gene encodes a GPI-anchored enzyme located on the human sperm surface and inner acrosomal membrane. This multifunctional protein is a hyaluronidase that enables sperm to penetrate through the hyaluronic acid-rich cumulus cell layer surrounding the oocyte, a receptor that plays a role in hyaluronic acid induced cell signaling, and a receptor that is involved in sperm-zona pellucida adhesion. Abnormal expression of this gene in tumors has implicated this protein in degradation of basement membranes leading to tumor invasion and metastasis. Multiple protein isoforms are encoded by transcript variants of this gene.


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