Isothermal Titration Calorimetry to Characterize Enzymatic Reactions

Isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) is a technique that measures the heat released or absorbed during a chemical reaction as an intrinsic probe to characterize any chemical process that involves heat changes spontaneously occurring during the reaction. The general features of this method to determine the kinetic and thermodynamic parameters of enzymatic reactions (kcat, KM, ΔH) are described and discussed here together with some detailed applications to specific cases. ITC does not require any modification or labeling of the system under analysis, can be performed in solution, and needs only small amounts of enzyme. These properties make ITC an invaluable, powerful, and unique tool to extend the knowledge of enzyme kinetics to drug discovery.