Carbonic Anhydrases as Esterases and Their Biotechnological Applications

Abstract Carbonic anhydrases (CAs) are zinc metalloenzymes that catalyze the reversible hydration of carbon dioxide. CAs are also known to exhibit weak and promiscuous esterase activity toward activated esters. The mechanism of the ester hydrolysis catalyzed by CAs and its similarity with the hydration of CO 2 will be discussed in this chapter. Applications of the esterase reaction in the design of novel antitumor compounds and improvements in the esterase activity and/or specificity by engineering CA active site will be described.