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Ultrafast enzymatic reaction dynamics in protochlorophyllide oxidoreductase
Derren J Heyes1, C Neil Hunter, Ivo H M van Stokkum
1Department of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S10 2TN, UK.
Nature Structural Biology
|May 6, 2003
Abstract:
The reaction catalyzed by the light-driven enzyme protochlorophyllide oxidoreductase (POR) has been initiated with a 50-fs laser pulse. We show that the catalytic mechanism, involving proton and hydride transfers, proceeds with time constants of 3 ps and 400 ps. It is known that catalysis by POR involves thermally excited protein dynamics; our results show that these molecular motions occur on an ultrafast timescale.