5. Enzymes Flashcards
enzyme definition
they are a protein that act as catalysts. speeding up chemical reactions in living organisms by lowering the activation energy.
catalyst definition
a substance that increases the rate of a chemical reaction and is not changed by the reaction
metabolic reactions definition
they are a chemical reaction that is constantly happening in a living organism. and most of the reactions are controlled by enzymes
what happens if there are no enzymes
the metabolic reactions would happen to slowly and wouldn’t be able to sustain life
starch is digested into….
sugar/ maltose by amylase
proteins are digested into…
amino acids by proteas
catalase definition
it works in all cells and breaks down hydorgen peroxide (H2 O2) into water and oxygen
hydrogen peroxide comes from…
its a byproduct of may chemicals reaction in cells, and is a dangerous substance that must be broken down quickly
enzymes don’t just break down…
they build up. they help make larger molecules out of smaller ones and they help link amino acids together to make a protein
enzymes nomenclature
enzymes are named according to the reaction they
catalyse and often end in -ase
e.g. nomenclature carbohydrases
speed up the breakdown of carbohydrates
enzymes work
active site, substrate, and product
enzymes: active site
the part of an enzyme molecule where a substance temporarily binds
enzymes: substrate
the substance that an enzyme causes to react
enzymes: product
the new substance formed by a chemical reaction
what can one enzyme do?
it can catalyse millions of reactions
what is the fastest enzyme
a catalase it can breakdown 44 million hydrogen peroxide molecules in one second
factor that affect the rate of reaction in enzymes
temperature and pH, every enzyme has an optimal temp and pH which they work fastest
temperatures affect on enzymes
a increase in temp speed up the chemical reaction and a decrease in temp slows down the chemical reaction. but above 50c° most enzymes stop working because they change shape, therefor active site no longer works because it is the wrong shape and the substances cant bind to the enzyme. this is the reason as to why most organisms cant survive high temps
