Catalytic Crosstalk: Cooperative Enzyme Dynamics in Artificial Crowded Environments
In cellular environments, enzymes operate under densely crowded conditions that often hinder catalytic efficiency by limiting substrate diffusion and essential conformational dynamics. While reports suggest that crowding can often lead to inhibition of enzyme's catalytic activity, persistent efficiency of cellular biochemistry hints at underlying cooperative mechanisms among these molecules. Here, we experimentally demonstrate catalytic crosstalk between two enzymes - catalase and urease - in artificially crowded environments. Our results reveal that when co-localized in dense media, these enzymes mutually enhance each other's catalytic activity and dynamic behavior. This cooperative interaction leads to a net increase in reaction rates and mobility, suggesting an emergent many-body effect in enzyme assemblies. Modeling enzymes as dimeric active particles, we propose a minimal simulation framework that qualitatively captures the observed synergy. Our findings show that inter-enzyme cooperation can counteract the detrimental effects of crowding, offering insights into how enzymatic efficiency is sustained in complex biological milieu.