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The hydrolysis of phosphate diesters in cyclohexane and acetone
Randy B Stockbridge1, Richard Wolfenden
1Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27599, USA.
Abstract:
The hydrolysis of phosphate diesters is one of the most difficult reactions known. Here we show that in acetone or cyclohexane, at 25 degrees C, phosphodiesters undergo hydrolysis 5 x 10(5) and 2 x 10(9)-fold more rapidly than in water, respectively, and that this rate enhancement is achieved by lowering the enthalpy of activation.
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