β-Glucuronidase

β-D-Glucuronoside glucuronosohydrolase

Beta-Glucuronidase, also known as β-D-Glucuronoside glucuronosohydrolase, is a lysosomal enzyme classified under family-2 glycosyl hydrolases. The E. coli β-Glucuronidase shares 50% sequence similarity with the human β-Glucuronidase and exhibits the same substrate specificity. Both enzymes consist of three structural domains: the sugar-binding domain, the immunoglobulin-like beta-sandwich domain, and the TIM barrel domain. These domains play crucial roles in the enzymatic activity of β-Glucuronidase.Enzyme Characteristics
The E. coli β-glucuronidase enzyme is essentially free of sulfatase activity and is especially efficient in cleaving steroid and benzodiazepine conjugates.
β-D-Glucuronoside glucuronosohydrolase
EC 3.2.1.31

Cleaves terminal glucuronic acid which is β-linked to mono-, oligo- or polysaccharides or phenol.

β-Glucuronidases have been used extensively in research and analytical laboratories for the enzymatic hydrolysis of steroid β-glucuronides. β-Glucuronidase is used:

• for the hydrolysis of steroid conjugates (glucuronides) in urine (pH 6.0–6.5)
• in doping analysis
• for the detection of benzodiazepine in small doses.
• during sample preparation to cleave off glucuronides prior to GC-MS, HPLC, immunoassays, or other analytical methods.

It has been used for the hydrolysis of plasma enterolactone, testosterone and epitestosterone glucuronide.

Glucuronidation is one of the basic principles of metabolism. Many substances presented to the human body undergo metabolic processing that includes conjugation with glucuronic acid by UDP-glucuronosyltransferases (UGTs). β-Glucuronidase, also known as β-D-glucuronoside glucuronosohydrolase, catalyzes the transfer of a glucuronyl group to many biological and pharmacologically active endogenous and exogenous molecules. Glucuronide is in general, more soluble, less toxic, and more easily excreted by the human body compared to the original molecule. To analyze these drug conjugates that are present in body fluids, such as urine and plasma, deconjugation of the glucuronide is necessary. Enzymatic hydrolysis prior to detection is essential to achieving high sensitivity during analysis. After hydrolysis, the sample may be analyzed by mass spectroscopy, gas chromatography, HPLC, immunoassays, or other analytical methods.

β-Glucuronidase from E. coli is highly specific for β-glucuronides, and is capable of very quickly hydrolyzing steroid β-glucuronides as well as cleaving many other types of glucuronides, such as benzodiazepine, opioid, and cannabinoid. β-Glucuronidase is used for the enzymatic hydrolysis of glucuronides in biological fluids, primarily urine. Substances used for doping are conjugated with glucuronides, which means that effective doping analysis relies very often on the enzymatic cleavage of conjugated drug molecules by β-glucuronidase.

• Perform fast analysis due to the enzyme′s high specific activity.
• Quickly screen for steroids, benzodiazepines, cannabinoids, and opioids.
• Save time by developing your procedure without the need to clean up the reaction or buffer the urine.

The international unit of β-glucuronidase activity is the enzyme activity that increases the rate of release of 4-nitrophenol from 4-nitrophenyl-β-D-glucuronide (4NPG) at a temperature of +25 °C and pH 7.0 by 1 μM.
The Fishman unit was previously used. This unit is the release of phenolphthalein from its glucuronide (PPG). It is not possible to measure the relative activities of different preparations for steroid β-glucuronides by comparing their activities with respect to PPG. Many preparation do not catalyze the hydrolysis of PPG, 4NPG, or the various steroid β-glucuronides in urine equally. The choice of 4NPG as standard substrate is based on the following considerations:

• The Michaelis concentrations for the two substrates are similar (K_M = 2 ×10^-4 M for 4 NPG and K_M = 6 ×10^-5 M for PPG), but the corresponding rates of hydrolysis differ:
• 4NPG is hydrolysed about 5 × as fast as PPG;
• For PPG, inhibition by excess substrate occurs; this is not observed using 4NPG.

Solution in 50% glycerol, pH approximately 6.5
(15 ml in one bottle)

The E.coli β-glucuronidase enzyme is essentially free of sulfatase activity and is especially efficient in cleaving steroid and benzodiazepine conjugates.
For life science research only. Not for use in diagnostic procedures.

The sale of the Product does not exhaust or grant any rights in third party patents including patents of companies of the F. Hoffmann - La Roche AG group of companies, in particular, for the use of modified antibodies obtained by using the product.