Work

Catalytic Principles from Natural Enzymes and Translational Design Strategies for Synthetic Catalysts

Year: 2020

Type: article

Abstract: As biocatalysts, enzymes are characterized by their high catalytic efficiency and strong specificity but are relatively fragile by requiring narrow and specific reactive conditions for activity. Synthetic catalysts offer an opportunity for more chemical versatility operating over a wider range of conditions but currently do not reach the remarkable performance of natural enzymes. Here we consider some new design strategies based on the contributions of nonlocal electric fields and thermodynamic fluctuations to both improve the catalytic step and turnover for rate acceleration in arbitrary synthetic catalysts through bioinspired studies of natural enzymes. With a focus on the enzyme as a whole catalytic construct, we illustrate the translational impact of natural enzyme principles to synthetic enzymes, supramolecular capsules, and electrocatalytic surfaces.

Source: ACS Central Science

DOI: 10.1021/acscentsci.0c01556

Authors: Wan-Lu Li, Teresa Head-Gordon

Institutions: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, University of California, Berkeley

Language: English

Topic: Enzyme Catalysis and Immobilization

Subfield: Molecular Biology

Field: Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology

Domain: Life Sciences

Open Access status: diamond

Funders: U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Science, Basic Energy Sciences