Chymotrypsin-like duodenase (ChlD), a new protease from the bovine duodenum mucosa was isolated and purified. The enzyme molecule is a single chain (25 kDa); the native enzyme is a monomer with an isoelectric point 10.0. ChlD displays the chymotrypsin-like activity and cleaves 4-nitroanilide substrates of chymotrypsin, chymases and cathepsin G. ChlD hydrolyzes its best substrate 2-N-succinylvalylprolylphenylalanine 4-nitroanilide with k(cat) of 2.8 s-1and catalytic efficiency k(cat)/K(m) of 2300 M-1s-1. The enzyme is stable with a pH range of 3-10 and exhibits the maximum activity at pH 8-10. ChlD is irreversibly inhibited by diisopropylphosphsfluoridate and phenylmethanesulfonyl fluoride, which is indicative of an active-site serine in this protease. α-N-tosyl-L-phenylalanine chloromethane, a specific reagent for a catalytically active His, markedly inhibited ChlD. The enzyme activity was strongly inhibited by several natural inhibitors of serine proteases (from soybean, potato, Lima bean, kidney bean). The N-terminal sequence of the native ChlD (23 amino acids) shows high similarity, but not identity, to those of duodenase, granzymes, chymases and cathepsin G.