BIOL Lab 3: Enzymes

Question 1

Enzymes

Answer 1

Biological catalysts that can increase the rate of a chemical reaction (e.g. the breakdown of sugar to energy) by more than a million-fold.

Question 2

Amino Acids

Answer 2

Almost all enzymes are proteins, composed of subunits called amino acids. There are 20 different ones that become building blocks of proteins.

Question 3

Substates

Answer 3

Reactants enzymes use one or more of to begin enzyme-mediated reactions. The substrate is binded to the enzyme and converted into product(s). Meanwhile the enzyme remains unchanged and can be recycled to react with more substrate to produce more product.

Question 4

Enzyme Functions

Answer 4

• Enzymes in our cells destroy harmful substances.
• Blood tests for specific enzymes can screen for liver and muscular diseases, certain types of cancer, heart attack, and phenylketonuria (PKU).
• Enzymes are used to tenderize tough cuts of meat (e.g. papain from papaya).
• Some laundry detergents use enzymes to clean clothes or remove stains.
• Enzymes are used in industry to produce foam rubber.
• Commercially, enzymes can be used to culture cheese, soften dough in baked goods, etc.

Question 5

Control

Answer 5

A same that will give a result of known or predictable outcome.

Question 6

Positive Control

Answer 6

Will show you the result you expect if the reactants are working correctly.

Question 7

Negative Control

Answer 7

One where one of the key reactants is deliberately left out of the mixture. Used to confirm that there are no contaminants int he materials are being used. Hence, the expected reaction does not occur within a negative control sample.

Question 8

Catalase

Answer 8

Enzyme present in nearly all animal cells and organs. Liver, red blood cells, and kidney rich sources of this enzyme. It has also been found in plant materials and microorganisms.

The ubiquitous nature of this enzyme conveys the importance of the reason it catalyzes; the breakdown of hydrogen peroxide into water and oxygen.

Question 9

Factors Affecting Enzyme Activity: Temp & pH

Answer 9

Temperature and pH have a similar effect on enzyme activity – there is an optimum.

Question 10

Factors Affecting Enzyme Activity: Enzyme Concentration

Answer 10

Increasing enzyme concentration will increase enzyme activity because there are more enzymes to work on the substrate molecules present.

Question 11

Factors Affecting Enzyme Activity: Substrate Concentration

Answer 11

Even though we did not test substrate concentration, you may predict that there is maximum speed at which the enzyme can work - this is called enzyme saturation. Unless enzyme concentration is increased simultaneously, enzyme activity will level out at a certain substrate concentration.