Molecular identification of hyaluronate lyase, not hyaluronidase, as an intrinsic hyaluronan-degrading enzyme in Clostridium perfringens strain ATCC 13124.

Clostridium perfringens, an opportunistic pathogen, produces mu-toxin hyaluronidases including endo-β-N-acetylglucosaminidases (Nags) as a virulence invasion factor. To clarify an intrinsic factor for degradation of host extracellular hyaluronan, we focused on hyaluronate lyase (HysA), distinct from endo-β-N-acetylglucosaminidases. C.