Enzymes

Question 1

What is an Enzyme?

Answer 1

An enzyme is a protein. They speed up chemical reactions, working with only one substrate to catalyse one reaction.

Question 2

What is a substrate?

Answer 2

the substance the enzyme is acting upon
Example: lactase is the enzyme, lactose is the substrate

Question 3

What is the active site?

Answer 3

Where the enzyme binds to the substrate

Question 4

What is the induced fit theory?

Answer 4

The mechanism of enzyme - substrate binding when they are no complementary in shape with each other

Question 5

What is the Lock and Key theory?

Answer 5

the binding of perfectly matching substrate and enzyme with each other for a reaction

Question 6

What is an Enzyme - substrate complex

Question 7

Factors affecting Enzyme activity

Question 8

What are the importance of Enzymes?

Question 9

What is Metabolism?

Answer 9

The collective of all complex chemical reactions which occur in the human body

Question 10

What is Anabolic reaction?

Answer 10

Builds up large molecules from smaller ones, require energy input (endogonic) Example: disaccaride formation

Question 11

What is Catabolic reaction?

Answer 11

breaks down a large molecule into smaller ones, releases energy (Exogonic) Example: respiration

Question 12

What is Activation Energy?

Answer 12

The minimum energy required for the reaction to occur

Question 13

What is Enzyme specificity?

Answer 13

Each enzyme is specifically shaped for one specific substrate only

Question 14

What is denaturing/denatured?

Question 15

How can an enzyme become denatured?

Question 16

Why are enzymes important for the maintence of life?

Answer 16

They make up most of our reactions inside the body. They speed up the reactions we need to live. They allow chemical reactions to occur at a rate that is needed for maintence of life.
Without enzymes, the reactions would not occur at the rate needed and the organism would die