HOW DO KINASES TRANSFER PHOSPHORYL GROUPS

Understanding how phosphoryl transfer is accomplished by kinases, a ub iquitous group of enzymes, is central to many biochemical processes. Q ualitative analysis of the crystal structures of enzyme-substrate comp lexes of kinases reveals structural features of these enzymes importan t to phosphoryl transfer. Recently determined crystal structures which mimic the transition state complex have added new insight into the de bate as to whether kinases use associative or dissociative mechanisms of catalysis. (C) Current Biology Ltd ISSN 0969-2126.