From: Spudboy100@aol.com
Date: Tue May 06 2003 - 06:32:16 MDT
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2003/05/030506073321.htm
<<CHAPEL HILL -- All biological reactions within human cells depend on
enzymes. Their power as catalysts enables biological reactions to occur
usually in milliseconds. But how slowly would these reactions proceed
spontaneously, in the absence of enzymes - minutes, hours, days? And why even
pose the question?
One scientist who studies these issues is Dr. Richard Wolfenden, Alumni
distinguished professor of biochemistry and biophysics and chemistry at the
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a member of the National
Academy of Sciences. In 1998, he reported a biological transformation deemed
"absolutely essential" in creating the building blocks of DNA and RNA would
take 78 million years in water.
"Now we've found one that's 10,000 times slower than that," Wolfenden said.
"Its half-time - the time it takes for half the substance to be consumed - is
1 trillion years, 100 times longer than the lifetime of the universe. Enzymes
can make this reaction happen in 10 milliseconds."
Wolfenden, along with co-authors Chetan Lad and Nicholas H. Williams of
Sheffield University in England, published a report of their new findings
April 29 in the online "early edition" of the Proceedings of the National
Academy of Sciences. Print publication is slated for May 13.>>
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