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Updated: Jan 2, 2026

Unraveling Entropic Rate Acceleration Induced by Solvent Dynamics in Membrane Enzymes
Published on: January 16, 2016
Light-controlled out-of-equilibrium assembly of cyclodextrins in an enzyme-mediated dynamic system
Dennis Larsen1, Philip M Bjerre1, Sophie R Beeren1
1Department of Chemistry, Technical University of Denmark, Kemitorvet 207, DK-2800 Kongens Lyngby, Denmark. sopbee@kemi.dtu.dk.
Abstract:
We show that the selective enzymatic synthesis of specific cyclodextrins can be modulated using light. We use enzyme-mediated dynamic combinatorial chemistry to generate a mixture of interconverting linear and cyclic α-1,4-glucans, and employ an azobenzene photoswitch as a template. Using UV or blue light to switch between photostationary states with different azobenzene cis/trans isomeric ratios, we can promote the out-of-equilibrium assembly of either α-cyclodextrin or β-cyclodextrin.
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