Patent ID: 8921080

Claim:
An isolated polypeptide having an esterase activity comprising hydrolysis of at least one of (4E)-5-chloro-2-isopropylpent-4-enoic-acid methyl ester, dimethyl-3-(3,4-dichlorphenyl)-glutarate, or para-nitrophenyl acetate, said polypeptide comprising an amino acid sequence shown in any one of SEQ ID NO's 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12 or 14 or a homologue thereof, wherein the amino acid sequence or homologue thereof has more than 95% identity to any one of 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12 or 14, said amino acid sequence or homologue thereof comprising an amino acid substitution or deletion of one or more amino acids as compared to any one of SEQ ID NO's 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12 or 14, wherein the at least one amino acid substitution or deletion has taken place at an amino acid position which is located at a point of interaction of monomers when the monomers are forming multimers and which destroys that point of interaction between the monomers, wherein the substitution or deletion has been carried out at at least one amino acid position corresponding to positions 43, 260 or 263 of SEQ ID NO: 2, and resulting in the polypeptide having an increased concentration of the fraction of the polypeptide being present as an active and soluble protein in cleared lysate of the polypeptide expressed in E.coli relative to the concentration of the fraction of the polypeptide without the substitution or deletion being present as an active and soluble protein in cleared lysate of the polypeptide without the at least one substitution or deletion expressed in E.coli under the same conditions.