Ch. 4 Ground Rules of Metabolism Flashcards
Energy
the capacity to do work
Kinetic Energy
energy when objects are in motion
Potential Energy
stored energy (in chemical bonds)
Thermodynamics (1st Law)
study of energy and energy transfer involving physical matter. Quantity of energy stays the same.
Second law of thermodynamics
energy disperses spontaneously
Metabolism
Chemical reactions that take place in living organisms
Metabolic pathway
a set of chemical reactions that involves the building, rearranging, or breaking down organic molecules.
Catabolic pathways
generate energy by breaking down larger molecules.
Anabolic pathways
require energy to synthesize larger molecules.
Reactant
molecule that enters a reaction and is changed by participating in it
Product
molecule that is produced by a reaction
Catalyst
an agent that speeds up the rate of a chemical reaction without being consumed (used up) during the reaction
Enzymes
protein catalysts in living cells
How enzymes lower activation energy
Puts a “strain” on the bonds in reactants to make it easier to achieve transition state.
Active site
pocket in an enzyme where substrates bind and a reaction occurs
