Simulating Enzyme Catalysis

Abstract

Chemistry is about transformations between compounds as the result of forming and breaking bonds between their atoms. A detailed knowledge of these processes should open the door to one of the most desired goals in this field, which is the control of the rate constants that govern the time dependence of the concentrations of reactants and products. Changes in the concentration and preparation of the reactants, the nature of the solvents and external conditions (such as pressure and temperature) can be employed to speed up or slow down a chemical reaction. One of the major breakthroughs in the field of chemical kinetics was achieved when it was recognized that certain substances, the catalysts , were able to accelerate chemical reactions without being consumed during the process.