Re: Is the 'Lock and Key' model for enzyme activity still valid and used today?

Hi,

There is one critical thing you're missing when you ask this question: since its inception, the 'lock and key' concept of an enzyme/substrate interaction (by Emil Fischer in 1894!) has become primarily an educational tool. The idea, from the very beginning, is a gross oversimplification - it only addresses a concept of SPECIFICITY but does not account for an equally important concept - that of AFFINITY. Of course -- for back then -- the whole idea should be considered a stroke of genius.

So, today the 'lock and key' concept has not lost its relevance - but also is not really ever in use - it's an example used for educational purposes. As such, it suits the goal of introducing the concept of molecular recognition to students, but is not explicitly used by the scientific community.

I hope this helps. If you wish to explore molecular recognition in detail, I can recommend "Protein-Ligand Interactions: From Molecular Recognition to Drug Design" as a starting point. http://www.wiley.com/WileyCDA/WileyTitle/productCd-3527305211.html

A.G. Evdokimov