The Evolution of Enzyme Catalytic Efficiency and Adaptive Inference from Steady-State Kinetic Data

In the last two decades the study of adaptation at the molecular level has become a rapidly growing part of evolutionary biology. Some of the impetus for this interest has come from the largely unconvincing attempts to explain the existence and patterns of structural diversity of homologous proteins, especially enzymes, within and among plant and animal species (Lewontin, 1974; Nei, 1975; Wilson et al., 1977; Ayala et al., 1976). Additional motivation has come from comparative physiology and the need to understand the molecular basis of physiological adaptation to different environments. These two interests have merged in the study of the function and evolution of both interspecific and intraspecific enzyme variants and the possible roles the observed structural and functional variation might play in adaptation.