CYP enzymes classification

The naming of cytochrome P450 enzymes, commonly referred to as CYPs, traces back to their discovery in the 1950s. The naming convention evolved to reflect their functional diversity and genetic variability across species. Enzyme designation consists of a number-letter-number sequence and provides the assignment of specific family and subfamily designations based on sequence homology. Members of the same family (e.g., CYP51A and CYP51B) are identical in at least 40% , while members of subfamilies (such as CYP51C) share >55% homology. The family-subfamily ID is supplemented by an ortholog group number.

proteins: Distinct P450 protein sequences in our database

families: Number of families in classification

subfamilies: Total number of subfamilies across all families

orthologs: Total number of ortholog groups across all subfamilies

Search with sequence

Assign a CYP subfamily to a query sequence. Please note this won't be a full CYP-id assignment since this service can't provide an ortholog group number.

Browse the database

Navigate through the tree of P450 families and subfamilies

Project leaders

Currently, the P450 naming efforts are lead by the consortium of three research groups from The University of Tennessee, The University of Zululand and The University of Warsaw.

Khajamohiddin Syed photo

prof. Khajamohiddin Syed

University of Zululand, South Africa

prof. David Nelson

The University of Tennessee, USA

prof. Dominik Gront

University of Warsaw, Poland

Frequently Asked Questions

Here are the questions we are most often asked regarding the P450Atlas:

  • How can I run a search for a batch of sequences?

    Due to the practical limitations, the search functionality of the P450Atlas is limited to 10 sequences in a single batch. Should you require broader search, please contact us directly and we run your search locally.

  • The article is currently under review: Gront D., Syed K. and Nelson D. "Exploring P450 Superfamily Diversity with P450Atlas - online tool for Automated Subfamily Assignment" Protein Science, submitted