Polymerization typically relies on harmful metal catalysts, but researchers in Japan have succeeded in circumventing this problem. Akira Harada at Osaka University and his colleagues constructed a synthetic polymerase that can catalyse the synthesis of high-molecular-weight polymers.
The polymerase is made up of two ring-shaped sugar molecules called cyclodextrins (CDs) linked together by a flexible covalent chain. The authors propose that one of the CDs functions as the active site, where key bonds in an incoming cyclic ester monomer are broken to open up the ester's ring, allowing it to bond with other monomers and form a chain. The second CD functions as a clamp, threading the growing chain through its hollow structure to hold the chain in place. As the polymerization proceeds, the growing chain slides by one position, freeing up space for the next incoming monomer.
The structure's design was inspired by the polymerases that synthesize DNA.
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DNA-inspired polymerization. Nature 475, 269 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1038/475269b
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/475269b
