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Updated: Dec 22, 2025

Measurement of Chitinase Activity in Biological Samples
Published on: August 22, 2019
Chitinases and Chitinase-Like Proteins in Obstructive Lung Diseases - Current Concepts and Potential Applications
Natalia Przysucha1, Katarzyna Górska1, Rafal Krenke1
1Department of Internal Medicine, Pulmonary Diseases and Allergy, Medical University of Warsaw, Warsaw, Poland.
Abstract:
Chitinases, enzymes that cleave chitin's chain to low molecular weight chitooligomers, are widely distributed in nature. Mammalian chitinases belong to the 18-glycosyl-hydrolase family and can be divided into two groups: true chitinases with enzymatic activity (AMCase and chitotriosidase) and chitinase-like proteins (CLPs) molecules which can bind to chitin or chitooligosaccharides but lack enzymatic activity (eg, YKL-40). Chitinases are thought to be part of an innate immunity against chitin-containing parasites and fungal infections. Both groups of these hydrolases are lately evaluated also as chemical mediators or biomarkers involved in airway inflammation and fibrosis. The aim of this article is to present the current knowledge on the potential role of human chitinases and CLPs in the pathogenesis, diagnosis, and course of obstructive lung diseases. We also assessed the potential role of chitinase and CLPs inhibitors as therapeutic targets in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and asthma.
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