Enzymes Flashcards
When do enzymes work the best?
At optimum pH and optimum temperature
How can enzyme activity be changed?
By altering pH and temperature
What happens when the temperature is above the optimum temp?
It denatures the enzyme
What happens if the temperature is below the optimum temp
The enzyme can be inactive
What happens if the pH is above the optimum
It will denature the enzyme and if below it can be inactive
Enzymes are biological catalysts. What does this mean?
They can speed up chemical reactions and break down or build up molecules. Enzymes do not take part in the reactions they catalyse
What is a substrate
A chemical that enzymes act upon
Each Enzyme acts on a specific substrate. What does this mean
They are specialised for certain substrates. E.g amylase always acts on starch and it could never act on a protein or fat molecules
Explain how enzymes fit into substrates
They fit into the active site of the substrate. E.g lock and key
What are the types of digestive enzymes
Charbohydrases
Proteases
Lipases
Starch reaction:
Starch digested by amylase –> maltose
Amylase- salivary or pancreatic
Reaction for maltose
Maltose digested by maltase –> glucose
Reaction for protein
Protein digested by proteases –> amino acids
Proteases e.g pepsin
Reaction for lipids
Lipids digested by Lipases –> fatty acids & glycerol
Reaction for hydrogen peroxide
H2O2 (hydrogen peroxide) digested by catalase –> water + oxygen
What is the order of consumption?
Ingestion -> digestion -> absorption -> assimilation -> egestion
What is ingestion
The process by which food material is taken into the body, the material is taken into the mouth and chewed up into smaller pieces by teeth
What is digestion
Can be either mechanical (teeth) or chemical (enzymes). It is the process by which larger complex molecules are broken down into smaller more simple molecules
What is absorption
The process by which the smaller molecules produced by digestion are passed into the blood supply of the ileum. The molecules pass across to the blood by diffusion and defines by active transport
What is assimilation?
The process by which the small molecules absorbed into the blood are passed into body cells and are then used to make the chemicals needed by the body. For example the amino acids from a plant protein can be arranged to make muscle protein in your body
What is egestion
The process by which undigested material (fibre) and dead cells and bacteria are removed from the body. E.g faeces POOO
What are enzymes made of?
Proteins
