Enzyme design by chemical modification of protein scaffolds

Covalent modification methods allow an almost unlimited range of functional ity to be introduced into proteins. In concert with genetic techniques, che mical strategies have had significant impact in the field of enzyme design. Major recent developments include introducing catalytic activity into inac tive proteins, modifying the selectivity and/or reactivity of existing enzy mes and designing novel enzyme-based biosensors. New chemical methods promi se to further increase the range of functionality that can be incorporated into proteins. These results suggest that semi-synthetic methods will play a key role in the development of future biocatalysts.