Chymotrypsin-like proteins of Daphnia pulex. (A) Derived amino-acid sequence and domain structure of the CHY1A gene from D. pulex. Predicted domain characteristics include the N-terminal signal peptide (white frame), the propeptide (blue), the chymotrypsin-like domain (red), the conserved disulfide bridges (connected cysteine residues), the catalytic triade (red characters), and substrate-specificity residues (blue characters). (B) Sequence alignment of chymotrypsin-like enzymes showing the substrate recognition site with the primary specificity (S1) residues at 189, 216 and 226 (numbering system of bovine chymotrypsinogen; [59]). The shape (tiny, small) and electrostatic character (non-polar, polar, charged) of S1 residues is indicated by color shading. (C) Phylogenetic tree for selected chymotrypsin-like sequences based on a multiple-sequence alignment of the chymotrypsin-like domain including four adjacent propeptide residues (see Additional file 2). Proteins detected in the present study are labeled in red (CHY1A and CHY1C). The tree was constructed using the neighbor-joining algorithm and was rooted with trypsin sequences. Bootstrap analysis was performed with 100 replicates (boostrap values <80 are omitted). Abbreviations and NCBI accession numbers: CHY1A-H, Daphnia pulex; CPC, collagenolytic protease from Paralithodes camtschaticus (AAL67441); CUP, collagenolytic protease from Celuca pugilator (P00771); ChPV, chymotrypsin BII from Litopenaeus vannamei (CAA71673); CES, protease from Euphausia superba [39]; ChPH, protease from Pediculus humanus corporis (AAV68346); CHL, collagenase precursor from Hypoderma lineatum (P08897); JoDM, Jonah 43E from Drosophila melanogaster (NP_724699); ChPC, chymotrypsin precursor from Phaedon cochleariae (O97398); ChAG, protease from Anopheles gambiae (AGAP005663-PA); ChCF, protease from Chlamys farreri (ABB89132); ChAM, chymotrypsinogen from Arenicola marina (CAA64472); ChRP, serine peptidase 2 from Radix peregra (ABL67951); ChBT, chymotrypsinogen A from Bos taurus (P00766); ChPO, chymotrypsinogen 2 from Paralichthys olivaceus (Q9W7Q3); TBT, trypsin precursor from Bos taurus (Q29463); TSS, trypsin-1 precursor from Salmo salar (P35031).