Biology
Ancestral Enzyme Variant Generates ATP with Fewer Amino Acids
Biochemists at Waseda University and the RIKEN Center for Integrative Medical Sciences have engineered a simplified ancestral enzyme that generates cellular energy without the amino acid traditionally required for the reaction. The biological invention, an engineered variant designated Arc1-12KR, produces adenosine triphosphate by combining two precursor molecules at a rate 7,500 times faster than earlier synthetic models. Described in research released in October 2026, the work provides a structural framework for designing stripped-down catalytic proteins.
Letizia Giugliano
