| Chitinases are hydrolytic enzymes that catalyze the degradation of chitin, a major component of fungal cell walls. |
| The hard parts may be mineralized, as in the shells of bivalves, or composed of organic material, such as the chitin that makes up the exoskeleton of arthropods. |
| There are a few other animal carbohydrates, notably chitin, the substance which constitutes the hard outer casing of insects and crustaceans. |
| Cell walls of Fusarium are made up, in part, of compounds called chitin and glucan, which the enzymes break down. |
| The procuticle is made up of layers of chitin fibres intermeshed with proteins and, in many species, with calcium salts. |
| The cell walls of most fungi also are predominantly chitin, which comprises nearly 50 percent of the dry weight of some species. |
