Yoshiki Narimatsu

Feb 22, 2024 | nature.com | Yoshiki Narimatsu |Christian Büll |Qinghua Liao |Francisco Corzana |Carme Rovira |Bernard Henrissat | +3 more

AbstractMicrobes utilize polysaccharides to protect their surfaces and build biofilms, whereas metazoans employ large mucins densely decorated with O-glycans to protect surfaces and keep microbes at a distance. However, gut microbes in mucus also feed on host mucins, thus imposing a need for continuous renewal to maintain protection, clearance and mucus homeostasis. Glycopeptidases that can cleave mucins are known, but mucinases that specifically cleave mucins are not.