Nomenclature of Enzymes

Enzymes can be named in several different ways.

The simplest and commonest scheme adds the suffix '-ase' to the name of the substrate the enzyme acts on — e.g. protease (acts on protein), sucrase (acts on sucrose), nuclease (acts on nucleic acids). Enzymes may equally be named after the type of reaction they carry out — e.g. a dehydrogenase removes hydrogen, a carboxylase adds CO2, a decarboxylase removes CO2, an oxidase brings about oxidation. A few enzymes are instead named after the source they were first obtained from — e.g. papain from papaya, bromelain from pineapple (a member of the Bromeliaceae). …