Celebrem el Premi Nobel de Química 2018. Evolució dirigida: de Charles R. Darwin a Frances H. Arnold

catalaFrances H. Arnold fou guardonada amb el Premi Nobel de Quimica de l’any 2018 per la seva recerca pionera en l’evolucio dirigida d’enzims, basada en el concepte darwinia de l’evolucio o seleccio natural, en que cada petita variacio que experimenta un esser viu determinat, si es util, es preserva (se selecciona). Els enzims son productes evolutius — no de disseny— que, mitjancant el proces de seleccio natural, els organismes mes ben adaptats tenen en la seva maquinaria biologica per catalitzar de manera molt efectiva les reaccions metaboliques amb vista a la supervivencia. El concepte seleccio natural portat al laboratori a nivell molecular per a un enzim concret, de manera accelerada i dirigida (amb una pressio evolutiva definida per l’investigador), per adaptar-ne les propietats catalitiques a les necessitats sintetiques dels quimics, es el que s’anomena evolucio dirigida d’enzims. En aquest article es revisen el concepte i les metodologies per dur a terme l’evolucio dirigida d’enzims, i es comenten els principals treballs d’investigacio amb aplicacions a la quimica organica sintetica de la premi Nobel Frances Hamilton Arnold.Paraules clau: Biocatalisi, evolucio dirigida, Frances H. Arnold, Premi Nobel de Quimica 2018. EnglishOne half of this year’s Nobel Prize in Chemistry has been awarded to Frances H. Arnold for her pioneering investigations of the directed evolution of enzymes, which are proteins that catalyze chemical reactions. The directed evolution of enzymes is based on the Darwinian concept of natural selection, by which each slight variation, if useful, is preserved. Enzymes are the products of evolution, not of design, and by natural selection the best adapted organisms contain the most updated and optimized enzyme repertoires to effectively catalyze the metabolic reactions essential for their survival. The concept of natural selection taken to the laboratory on molecular level for a specific enzyme – with an evolutionary pressure defined by the researcher – in order to adapt its catalytic properties to given synthetic needs, is what is called directed evolution of enzymes. In this paper, the concept and methodologies of directed evolution are reviewed, as well as the main research work with applications in synthetic organic chemistry of the Nobel laureate Frances H. Arnold.Keywords: Biocatalysis, directed evolution, Frances H. Arnold, Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2018.