Relation between enzymic catalysis and energy coupling.

The principles that underlie enzyme catalysis also apply to energy coupling processes. A comparison is made between a kinase system that mediates the phosphorylation of glucose by ATP (hexokinase), as the prototype for enzymic catalysis, and the mitochondrial electron-transfer complexes, as the prototypes for energy coupling systems. Induced polarization of chemical bonds and charge separation and elimination are common component events of both enzyme catalysis and energy coupling. Thus, definite limits can be imposed on models of energy coupling; they must comply with the basic principles of enzymic catalysis.