Related Experiment Video
Updated: Mar 19, 2026

Author Spotlight: Exploring Cellular Processes by Modeling Ligands in Cryo-EM Maps
Published on: July 19, 2024
Energy Landscape Topography Reveals the Underlying Link Between Binding Specificity and Activity of Enzymes
Wen-Ting Chu1, Jin Wang1,2
1State Key Laboratory of Electroanalytical Chemistry, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun, Jilin, 130022, China.
Abstract:
Enzyme activity (often quantified by kcat/Km) is the main function of enzyme when it is active against the specific substrate. Higher or lower activities are highly desired for the design of novel enzyme and drug resistance. However, it is difficult to measure the activities of all possible variants and find the "hot-spot" within the limit of experimental time. In this study, we explore the underlying energy landscape of enzyme-substrate interactions and introduce the intrinsic specificity ratio (ISR), which reflects the landscape topography. By studying two concrete systems, we uncover the statistical correlation between the intrinsic specificity and the enzyme activity kcat/Km. This physics-based concept and method show that the energy landscape topography is valuable for understanding the relationship between enzyme specificity and activity. In addition, it can reveal the underlying mechanism of enzyme-substrate actions and has potential applications on enzyme design.
Related Concept Videos
Ligand Binding and Linkage
Ligand Binding and Linkage
Induced-fit Model
Enzymes exhibit substrate specificity, meaning that they can only bind to certain substrates. This is mainly determined by the shape and chemical...
Enzymes
Enzyme deficiencies can often translate into life-threatening diseases. For example, a genetic abnormality resulting in the deficiency of the enzyme G6PD...
Introduction to Mechanisms of Enzyme Catalysis
The Equilibrium Binding Constant and Binding Strength

