Although RNA is generally thought to be a passive genetic blueprint, some RNA molecules,
called ribozymes, have intrinsic enzyme-like activity—they can catalyse chemical reactions …

In protein and RNA macromolecules, only a limited number of different side‐chain chemical
groups are available to function as catalysts. The myriad of enzyme‐catalyzed reactions …

The natural RNA enzymes catalyse phosphate-group transfer and peptide-bond formation.
Initially, metal ions were proposed to supply the chemical versatility that nucleotides lack. In …

Ribozymes enhance chemical reaction rates using many of the same catalytic strategies as
protein enzymes. In the hepatitis delta virus (HDV) ribozyme, site-specific self-cleavage of …

Recent crystallographic and functional analyses of RNA enzymes have raised the possibility
that the purine and pyrimidine nucleobases may function as general acid-base catalysts …

Several small ribozymes carry out self-cleavage at a specific phosphodiester bond to yield 2
', 3 '-cyclic phosphate and 5 '-hydroxyl termini. Prior mechanistic and structural studies on the …

Designing artificial systems with catalytic efficiencies to rival those of natural enzymes is one
of the great challenges facing science today. Our current level of understanding fails the …

ABSTRACT pH is a ubiquitous regulator of biological activity, including protein‐folding,
protein‐protein interactions, and enzymatic activity. Existing constant pH molecular …

Five naturally occurring nucleolytic ribozymes have been identified: the hammerhead,
hairpin, glmS, hepatitis delta virus (HDV), and Varkud satellite (VS) ribozymes. All of these …

pKa calculations based on the Poisson–Boltzmann equation have been widely used to
study proteins and, more recently, DNA. However, much less attention has been paid to the …