We examine the stochastic dynamics of two enzymes that are mechanically coupled to each other e.g. through an elastic substrate or a fluid medium. The enzymes undergo conformational changes during their catalytic cycle, which itself is driven by stochastic steps along a biased chemical free energy landscape. We find conditions under which the enzymes can synchronize their catalytic steps, and discover that the coupling can lead to a significant enhancement in the overall catalytic rate of the enzymes. Both effects can be understood as arising from a global bifurcation in the underlying dynamical system at sufficiently strong coupling. Our findings suggest that despite their molecular scale enzymes can be cooperative and improve their performance in dense metabolic clusters.
Download