protease

American  

[proh-tee-eys, -eyz] / ˈproʊ tiˌeɪs, -ˌeɪz /

noun

Biochemistry.

1. any of a group of enzymes that catalyze the hydrolytic degradation of proteins or polypeptides to smaller amino acid polymers.

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protease British  

/ ˈprəʊtɪˌeɪs /

noun

1. any enzyme involved in proteolysis

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protease Scientific  

/ prō′tē-ās′ /

1. Any of various enzymes that bring about the breakdown of proteins into peptides or amino acids by hydrolysis. Pepsin is an example of a protease.

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Etymology

Origin of protease

First recorded in 1900–05; prote(in) + -ase

Example Sentences

Scientists at Ruhr University Bochum found that the protein produced by CD99L2 works as an activating partner for CAPN1, a calcium-dependent protease already known to be involved in hereditary spastic paraplegia and ataxia.

From Science Daily • Jun. 13, 2026

The mirror protease only works on mirror peptides, which means, by the law of mirror-image symmetry that applies to chiral molecules, that regular proteases would likewise be unable to cut down mirror-image peptides.

From Salon • Jan. 18, 2025

Moreover, virtually any protease can be detected if the peptide it splits is known.

From Science Daily • Dec. 13, 2023

These nanoprobes yield 100-fold higher fluorescence signals compared to commercial fluorescence-based protease sensors.

From Science Daily • Dec. 13, 2023

The best-known example of this type of enzymes is the protease of yeast; but similar ones may be found in germinating seeds.

From The Chemistry of Plant Life by Thatcher, Roscoe Wilfred