Question

Which of the following statements regarding ligand-binding kinetics is true?

a. Greater Kₐ, value is associated with greater binding affinity of a ligand for the protein
b. Association rate constant Kₐ, and dissociation rate constant K for ligand binding are equal at equilibrium
c. None of these
d. represents the fraction of ligand binding sites not yet occupied

Answer 1

The true statement regarding ligand-binding kinetics is that a greater Ka value signifies a greater binding affinity of a ligand for the protein, since Ka is inversely related to the dissociation constant.

Step-by-step explanation:

The correct statement regarding ligand-binding kinetics is a. Greater Ka value is associated with greater binding affinity of a ligand for the protein. This statement is true because the binding affinity (Ka or simply K) is inversely proportional to the dissociation constant (Kd). A higher Ka (equilibrium association constant) corresponds to a lower Kd, meaning that the ligand binds more tightly to the protein, and the binding affinity is greater. Statement b is incorrect because at equilibrium, the association rate and dissociation rate constants are not equal, but the rate of association is balanced by the rate of dissociation. Statement d is unrelated to the correct context of K values.