Fried, S. D.; Bagchi, S.; Boxer, S. G. Science 2014, 346, 1510-1514. [DOI]
Using vibrational Stark effect spectroscopy, we discovered that the active site of the enzyme ketosteroid isomerase exerts an unusually large electric field on its substrate, and demonstrate that this electric field provides the physical basis for a substantial portion of the enzyme’s catalytic power.
A perspective by Peter Hildebrandt does a great job of explaining the work to a more general scientific audience.
