Do dynamic effects play a significant role in enzymatic catalysis? A theoretical analysis of formate dehydrogenase

A theoretical study of the protein dynamic effects on the hydride transfer between the formate anion and nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD(+)), catalyzed by formate dehydrogenase (FDH), is presented in this paper. The analysis of free downhill molecular dynamic trajectories, performed in the enzyme and compared with the reaction in aqueous solution, has allowed the study of the dynamic coupling between the reacting fragments and the protein or the solvent water molecules, as well as an estimation of the dynamic effect contribution to the catalytic effect from calculation of the transmission coefficient in the enzyme and in solution. The obtained transmission coefficients for the enzyme and in solution were 0.46±0.04 and 0.20±0.03, respectively. These values represent a contribution to catalysis of 0.5 kcal mol(-1), which, although small, is not negligible keeping in mind the low efficiency of FDH. The analysis of the reactive trajectories also reveals how the relative movements of some amino acids, mainly His332 and Arg284, precede and promote the chemical reaction. In spite of these movements, the time-dependent evolution of the electric field created by the enzyme on the key atoms of the reaction reveals a permanent field, which reduces the work required to reach the transition state, with a concomitant polarization of the cofactor. Finally, application of Grote-Hynes theory has allowed the identification of the modes responsible for the substrate-environment coupling, showing how some protein motions take place simultaneously with the reaction. Thus, the equilibrium approach would provide, in this case, an overestimation of the catalyzed rate constant.