This makes it challenging to identify the rate-limiting step of the overall reaction. As a result, optimizing photocatalytic reactions for maximum efficiency remains a significant challenge.

One concern about introducing nanoparticles into the body is that they have a very high surface area that nucleates protein assembly — the rate-limiting step in the formation of harmful fibrils.

The observation that chain compaction need not significantly precede the rate-limiting step of folding demonstrates that rapid chain collapse is not an obligatory feature of protein folding reactions.