β-Glucuronidases

Enzymes that hydrolyse β-glucuronidic linkages, releasing glucuronic acid from glucuronide conjugates. They are prominent in gut microbiology: intestinal bacteria use them to deconjugate compounds the liver had marked for excretion, which can reactivate drugs and toxins in the gut and affects the fate of food-borne glucuronides. In food analysis they serve as markers: E. coli β-glucuronidase activity is the basis of rapid chromogenic tests for faecal contamination in water and foods. They also participate in the turnover of pectic polysaccharides containing glucuronic acid. Their dual role, microbial metabolism and analytical marker, makes them relevant to both food safety testing and digestive physiology.