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Origin of high efficiency and specificity of biochemical reactions
Author(s) -
Hobza Pavel,
Zahradník Rudolf,
Ladik Janos
Publication year - 1984
Publication title -
international journal of quantum chemistry
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.484
H-Index - 105
eISSN - 1097-461X
pISSN - 0020-7608
DOI - 10.1002/qua.560260523
Subject(s) - intermolecular force , van der waals force , chemistry , chemical physics , chemical reaction , computational chemistry , reactivity (psychology) , non covalent interactions , molecule , organic chemistry , hydrogen bond , medicine , alternative medicine , pathology
It is suggested that the extreme efficiency and specificity observed for chemical reactions in biological systems (compared to chemical reactions occurring under common chemical conditions) is mainly due to special features of these reactions. A key position is ascribed to the role of weak intermolecular interactions (also called noncovalent or van der Waals); in addition, the important role of the entropy and of cyclic or cavitylike shapes of numerous reaction sites, together with the influence of strong local electric fields on transport phenomena and reactivity are discussed. The greatest attention is paid to the applicability of computational methods for evaluation of weak intermolecular interactions, ranging from beyond Hartree—Fock methods to empirical potentials.