1. ABZYMES
• An abzyme is an antibody that expresses catalytic
activity. A single molecule of an antibody-enzyme,
or abzyme, is capable of catalyzing the destruction
of thousands oh target molecules. An abzyme is
used to lower the activation energy of a reaction
allowing for the transition state to be possible and
the product to be formed. An abzyme are typically
artificially made and is made by having the immune
system make antibodies that bind to a molecule
that resembles the transition state of the catalytic
process

2. • Abzyme are currently being researched for the
possible use against HIV infection. The abzymes
could target a specific site on the HIV infected cells
that do not mutate and then make the virus inert.
This is an on going research project. Abzymes are
chosen from monoclonal antibodies which are
created by immunizing mice with haptens which
mimic the transition states of enzyme-catalyzed
reactions. The rate of this reaction is promoted by
enzyme catalysts that stabilize the transition state
of this reaction, thereby decreasing the activation
energy and allowing for more rapid conversions of
substrate product

3. • A ribozyme is a ribonucleic acid enzyme or RNA
enzyme that catalyzes a chemical reaction. The
ribozyme catalyses specific reactions in a similar way to
that of protein enzymes.
• Also called catalytic RNA, ribozymes are found in the
ribosome where they join amino acids together to form
protein chains. Ribozymes also play a role in other vital
reactions such as RNA splicing, transfer RNA
biosynthesis, and viral replication.
• The first ribozyme was discovered in the early 1980s
and led to researchers demonstrating that RNA
functions both as a genetic material and as a biological
catalyst

4. • Many naturally occurring ribozymes either aid the
hydrolysis of their own phosphodiester bonds or
cause the hydrolysis of bonds in other RNAs. They
also catalyze the aminotransferase activity of the
ribosome. Ribozymes may also play an important
role in therapeutic areas, acting as molecules that
can tailor specific RNA sequences, acting as
biosensors and providing a useful tool in
applications such as gene research and functional
genomics.

5. • Naturally occurring ribozymes include:
• CoTC ribozyme
• GIR1 branching ribozyme
• glmS ribozyme
• Group I and Group II introns
• Hairpin ribozyme
• Hammerhead ribozyme
• HDV ribozyme