Catalysis is the process of increasing the rate of a chemical reaction by adding a substance known as a catalyst, which is not consumed in the reaction. In the context of PARP inhibitors, the enzyme PARP acts as a biological catalyst that facilitates the repair of DNA. By inhibiting this enzyme, PARP inhibitors effectively "deactivate" the catalytic activity of PARP, making them essential tools in understanding enzyme-catalyzed DNA repair processes.
