Molecular analysis of the gene encoding a novel cold-adapted chitinase (ChiB) from a marine bacterium, Alteromonas sp. strain O-7.

The chitinase B (ChiB) secreted by Alteromonas sp. strain O-7 was purified, and the corresponding gene (chiB) was cloned and sequenced. The open reading frame of the chiB gene encodes a protein of 850 amino acids with a calculated molecular mass of 90,223 Da.