Molecular determinants of nonaqueous biocatalysis

Dissertation presented to obtain the Ph.D degree in Biochemistry

Over the last thirty years, the tremendous biotechnological potential of nonaqueous biocatalysis has boosted research efforts in this area. Numerous studies have tried to elucidate how enzymes work in these nonconventional media and many properties are now well understood. However, when this thesis was initiated, some aspects of this field were poorly characterized at the molecular level. In particular, the molecular determinants of protein-ion interactions, enzyme stability, and molecular memory, are important issues which were lacking a thorough molecular analysis. These three subjects are herein investigated using molecular simulation methodologies.(...)