Chondroitin AC lyase from Flavobacterium heparinum degrades chondroitin sulfate glycosaminoglycans via an elimination mechanism resulting in disaccharides or oligosaccharides with Δ4, 5-unsaturated uronic acid residues at their nonreducing end. Mechanistic details concerning the ordering of the bond-breaking and-forming steps of this enzymatic reaction are nonexistent, mainly due to the inhomogeneous nature of the ...
