isomerase

American  

[ahy-som-uh-reys, -reyz] / aɪˈsɒm əˌreɪs, -ˌreɪz /

noun

Biochemistry.

1. any of a class of enzymes that catalyze reactions involving intramolecular rearrangements.

---

isomerase British  

/ aɪˈsɒməreɪs /

noun

1. any enzyme that catalyses the conversion of one isomeric form of a compound to another

---

Etymology

Origin of isomerase

First recorded in 1940–45; isomer + -ase

Example Sentences

Another enzyme produced by the bacteria, known as arabinose isomerase, then converts the galactose into tagatose.

From Science Daily • Jan. 13, 2026

In the second step of glycolysis, an isomerase converts glucose-6-phosphate into one of its isomers, fructose-6-phosphate.

From Textbooks • Jun. 9, 2022

Further experiments revealed that supplying xylose isomerase to flies whose bacteria had been eliminated was necessary and sufficient to modulate fly locomotion.

From Nature • Oct. 23, 2018

Xylose isomerase probably functions to increase the diversity of the carbon sources that L. brevis can exploit, as is the case for the many other bacteria that produce this enzyme.

From Nature • Oct. 23, 2018

In the next step of the first phase of glycolysis, the enzyme glucose-6-phosphate isomerase converts glucose-6-phosphate into fructose-6-phosphate.

From Textbooks • Jun. 19, 2013