酪氨酸酶(EC 1.14.18.1)是一种含铜的氧化还原酶,它广泛存在于动植物和微生物中,与生物体合成色素直接相关.在人体中,它与色素障碍性疾病及恶性黑色素肿瘤的发生与治疗有关.因此对编码酪氨酸酶基因的结构、表达及其调控,以及酪氨酸酶的抑制剂和激活剂的研究,引起国内外的广泛重视.目前,对酪氨酸酶活性中心及其催化功能的研究比较透彻,但对酪氨酸酶蛋白的立体结构尚不清楚.
Tyrosinase is a copper-containing enzyme,as known as polyphenol oxidase,which is widely distributed in microorganisms, plants and animals. In human being, tyrosinase is the key enzyme for melanin biosynthesis, and is associated with melanin hyperpigmentation such as melasma, freckles, ephelide,senile lentigines. Furthermore,the studies for tyrosinase including the structure, expression and regulation of coding tyrosinase gene, and the inhibitors and activators of tyrosinase, have been paid attention to in the world. As so far,the active site and catalyic capacity of tyrosinase have been studied intensively, however, the three-dimensional structure of tyrosinase has been unclear.