Biomaterial Database

Hidden Conformational States and Strange Temperature Optima in Enzyme Catalysis. 2020

Johan Åqvist, and Jaka Sočan, and Miha Purg

Department of Cell & Molecular Biology, Uppsala University, Biomedical Center, Box 596, SE-751 24 Uppsala, Sweden.

The existence of temperature optima in enzyme catalysis that occur before protein melting sets in can be described by different types of kinetic models. Such optima cause distinctly curved Arrhenius plots and have, for example, been observed in several cold-adapted enzymes from psychrophilic species. The two main explanations proposed for this behavior either invoke conformational equilibria with inactive substrate-bound states or postulate differences in heat capacity between the reactant and transition states. Herein, we analyze the implications of the different types of kinetic models in terms of apparent activation enthalpies, entropies, and heat capacities, using the catalytic reaction of a cold-adapted α-amylase as a prototypic example. We show that the behavior of these thermodynamic activation parameters is fundamentally different between equilibrium and heat capacity models, and in the α-amylase case, computer simulations have shown the former model to be correct. A few other enzyme-catalyzed reactions are also discussed in this context.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D007700	Kinetics	The rate dynamics in chemical or physical systems.
D008958	Models, Molecular	Models used experimentally or theoretically to study molecular shape, electronic properties, or interactions; includes analogous molecules, computer-generated graphics, and mechanical structures.	Molecular Models,Model, Molecular,Molecular Model
D003080	Cold Temperature	An absence of warmth or heat or a temperature notably below an accustomed norm.	Cold,Cold Temperatures,Temperature, Cold,Temperatures, Cold
D000516	alpha-Amylases	Enzymes that catalyze the endohydrolysis of 1,4-alpha-glycosidic linkages in STARCH; GLYCOGEN; and related POLYSACCHARIDES and OLIGOSACCHARIDES containing 3 or more 1,4-alpha-linked D-glucose units.	Taka-Amylase A,alpha-Amylase,Alpha-Amylase Bayer,Maxilase,Mégamylase,alpha-1,4-D-Glucanglucanohydrolase,Alpha Amylase Bayer,AlphaAmylase Bayer,Taka Amylase A,TakaAmylase A,alpha 1,4 D Glucanglucanohydrolase,alpha Amylase,alpha Amylases
D013696	Temperature	The property of objects that determines the direction of heat flow when they are placed in direct thermal contact. The temperature is the energy of microscopic motions (vibrational and translational) of the particles of atoms.	Temperatures
D013816	Thermodynamics	A rigorously mathematical analysis of energy relationships (heat, work, temperature, and equilibrium). It describes systems whose states are determined by thermal parameters, such as temperature, in addition to mechanical and electromagnetic parameters. (From Hawley's Condensed Chemical Dictionary, 12th ed)	Thermodynamic
D020134	Catalytic Domain	The region of an enzyme that interacts with its substrate to cause the enzymatic reaction.	Active Site,Catalytic Core,Catalytic Region,Catalytic Site,Catalytic Subunit,Reactive Site,Active Sites,Catalytic Cores,Catalytic Domains,Catalytic Regions,Catalytic Sites,Catalytic Subunits,Core, Catalytic,Cores, Catalytic,Domain, Catalytic,Domains, Catalytic,Reactive Sites,Region, Catalytic,Regions, Catalytic,Site, Active,Site, Catalytic,Site, Reactive,Sites, Active,Sites, Catalytic,Sites, Reactive,Subunit, Catalytic,Subunits, Catalytic
D031161	Pseudoalteromonas	A genus of GRAM-NEGATIVE AEROBIC BACTERIA of marine origin. Many species were formerly classified under ALTEROMONAS.