B2 Flashcards
What are cells?
Basic building blocks of all living organisms
What is a tissue?
- Group of similar cells that work together to carry out a particular function
- Can include more than one type of cell
What is an organ?
A group of different tissues that work together to perform a certain function
What are organs organised into?
Organ systems, which work together to form organisms
State an example of an organ system which several organs work together to digest and absorb food
The digestive system
What is metabolism?
All the chemical reactions that go on inside an organism’s body.
With all the reactions in the body, what happens?
- These reactions build up molecules, and break them down
- They are controlled by enzymes
What is glycogen broken down for?
- To meet short-term demands for energy
How does temperature affect enzyme reaction?
- The rate of an enzyme-catalysed reaction increases as the temperature increases.
- However, at high temperatures the rate decreases again because the enzyme becomes denatured and can no longer function.
What happens to an enzyme when the temperature increases?
- As the temperature increases so does the rate of enzyme activity.
- An optimum activity is reached at the enzyme’s optimum temperature.
- A continued increase in temperature results in a sharp decrease in activity as the enzyme’s active site changes shape. It is now denatured.
How does the change in PH affect enzyme reaction?
- Changes in pH can alter the shape of an enzyme’s active site.
- Each enzyme work bests at a specific pH value.
(In the graph above, as the pH increases so does the rate of enzyme activity. An optimum activity is reached at the enzyme’s optimum pH, pH 8 in this example. A continued increase in pH results in a sharp decrease in activity as the enzyme’s active site changes shape. It is now denatured.)
What does the optimum pH depend on?
- Depends on where it normally works.
- E.g enzymes in the small intestine have an optimum pH of about 7.5, but stomach enzymes have an optimum pH of about 2.
When do enzymes work well? (Substrate)
- Enzymes will work best if there is plenty of substrate.
- However, the rate of enzyme activity does not increase forever.
- As a point will be reached when the enzymes become saturated and no more substrates can fit at any one time even though there is plenty of substrate available.
What does substrate concentration do to enzymes?
- As the substrate concentration increases so does the rate of enzyme activity.
- An optimum rate is reached at the enzyme’s optimum substrate concentration.
- A continued increase in substrate concentration results in the same activity as there are not enough enzyme molecules available to break down the excess substrate molecules.
State the equation to find rate of reaction in enzymes
Rate of reaction = amount of substrate used or amount of product formed / time taken
Why do enzymes catalyse specific reactions in living organisms?
Due to the shape of their active site
Explain the ‘lock and key theory’ for enzymes
- Enzymes are specific to one type of substrate as they have an active site that has a complementary shape to one substrate type only.
- Once the substrate has fitted perfectly into the active site it forms an enzyme-substrate complex
(See page 25 for this)
What does the amylase enzyme help break down?
Starch into sugars
What does the protease enzyme help break down?
Proteins into animo acids
What does the lipase enzyme help break down?
Lipids into glycerol and fatty acids
Where is amylase made in?
Salivary glands, pancreas and small intestine
Where is protease made in?
Stomach, pancreas and small intestine
Where is lipase made in?
Pancreas and small intestine
Where does amylase work in?
Mouth and small intestine