Abstract
α-Glucosidase contributing starch and glycogen metabolisms in plant and animal tissue is characterized by the variety in substrate recognition. Recent studies showed that α-glucosidases could be divided into two groups, family I and family II, in which family I enzymes belong to the α-amylase family. This paper focusing on the difference in the α-glucosidase families reviews the structural information including the catalytic amino acid residues of nucleophile and acid/base catalyst, the recognition of substrate molecule, and the intermediate in the transition state of hydrolytic reaction.
