Section 6.3: Chemical Modes of Enzyme Catalysis
- The chemical modes of catalysis refers to the chemical effects that an enzyme contributes
to the reaction (in contrast to binding and conformational effects)
- The two main types of chemical effects in enzymes are acid-base catalysis and covalent catalysis
- Both of these effect are brought about through the use of polar and ionizable side chains in the
enzyme. These can be thought of as the 'hot-spots' in the otherwise unreactive hydrophobic pocket that composes
the active site of most enzymes
- The following side chains act to provide the majority of reactive groups in enzyme catalysis:
