[1][2][3][4] This enzyme catalyses the following chemical reaction Hydrolyses double- or single-stranded substrate DNA or RNA.
[5] It was cloned in 1987 and shown to consist of a 266 protein precursor,[6] which is further cleaved and secreted as a 245 amino acid active nuclease.
A patent covering the recombinant expression of Serratia nuclease in E. coli was submitted by Benzon Pharma in 1986, granted in 1992, & expired in 2006.
[11] Notably, the patented sequence[10][12] for Benzonase is slightly different (1 amino acid substitution) from the Serratia marcescens nuclease which was cloned publicly.
[13] As the benzonase patent is now expired, and in fact was never submitted nor granted in the United States, several commercial alternatives for recombinantly produced Serratia marcescens nuclease are now available: (A current notable non-producer is New England Biolabs)[23]