Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 25, 2026

Unraveling Entropic Rate Acceleration Induced by Solvent Dynamics in Membrane Enzymes
Published on: January 16, 2016
Kinetic characterization of spiropyrans in aqueous media
Thorsten Stafforst1, Donald Hilvert
1Laboratory of Organic Chemistry, ETH Zurich, Hönggerberg HCI F322, CH-8093 Zürich, Switzerland. stafforst@org.chem.ethz.ch
Abstract:
Detailed kinetic investigations of the most common photoswitchable spiropyran, 6-nitro-BIPS, reveal that hydrolytic decomposition of its merocyanine isomer limits its utility in aqueous buffer; however, simple replacement of the 6-nitro substituent with an 8-carboxylate yields a BIPS photoswitch that is potentially better suited for biological applications.
Related Concept Videos
Measuring Reaction Rates
Indirect-Acting Cholinergic Agonists: Pharmacokinetics
Reversible agents containing quaternary amines, such as neostigmine and edrophonium, are not easily absorbed orally because they are...
Introduction to Enzyme Kinetics
The experimenter can then plot the initial reaction rate or velocity (Vo) of a given trial against the substrate concentration ([S]) to obtain a graph of the reaction properties. For many enzymatic reactions involving a...
Physical Properties Affecting Solubility
As for any solution, the solubility of a gas in a liquid is affected by the attractive intermolecular forces between solute and solvent species. Unlike solid and liquid solutes, however, there is no solute-solute intermolecular attraction to overcome when a gaseous solute dissolves in a liquid solvent since the atoms or molecules comprising a gas are far separated and experience negligible interactions. Consequently, solute-solvent interactions are the sole...
SN1 Reaction: Kinetics
However, Sir Christopher Ingold and Edward D. Hughes, who studied the kinetics of various nucleophilic substitution reactions, noticed that a tertiary alkyl halide does undergo a nucleophilic substitution reaction in the presence of a weak nucleophile. While studying the substitution...
Passive Diffusion: Overview and Kinetics
When administered orally, drugs establish a substantial concentration gradient between the gastrointestinal (GI) lumen and the bloodstream, expediting their diffusion into...

