ENZYMES: function

Question 1

enzymes are

Answer 1

biological catalysts!

Question 2

what is it meant by “enzymes are biological catalysts”

Answer 2

they speed up the rate of chemical reactions without being used up themselves; lowering the activation energy and forming a new reaction pathway.

Question 3

define: activation energy

Answer 3

minimum amount of energy required for reaction to proceed

Question 4

what is the significance of enzymes in sustaining life?

Answer 4

o Enables chemical reactions to occur at a rate which can sustain human life. Otherwise, reactions would occur so slowly that the cell/organism would die.

Question 5

can enzymes be intracellular or extracellular?

Answer 5

yes

Question 6

define: intra/extracellular

Answer 6

enzymes that act on substrates in solution within/outside of cells.

Question 7

define: proenzyme/zymogen

Answer 7

enzymes that are only activated in response to a relevant signal, preventing enzyme activity at inappropriate times and places and thus preventing damage.

Question 8

example of a proenzyme?

Answer 8

Eg. prothrombin is the proenzyme. When blood vessels are damaged/bleeding is occurring, prothrombin is converted to active thrombin. Reaction that converts soluble monomeric protein fibrin to insoluble polymeric protein fibrin, which aggregates and forms a clot and prevents bleeding, is then catalysed by thrombin.