Enzymes Flashcards

Enzymes Overview

• Enzymes are primarily composed of amino acids, forming complex structures essential for biological functions.
• They act as catalysts, significantly speeding up chemical reactions in living organisms by lowering activation energy.

Functionality of Enzymes

• Enzymes facilitate the conversion of substrates into products, increasing the rate of metabolic reactions.
• Metabolism encompasses two main processes: anabolism (building up) and catabolism (breaking down).

Types of Metabolic Processes

• Anabolic processes involve the synthesis of complex molecules from simpler ones.
• Catabolic processes entail the breakdown of larger molecules into smaller components.

Role of Catalysts

• Enzymes function as biological catalysts, essential for reactions such as the breakdown of hydrogen peroxide into hydrogen and oxygen.
• Without enzymes, necessary life-sustaining reactions would occur at much higher temperatures, which could be harmful.

Enzyme Structure

• The active site is the specific region where the enzyme interacts with the substrate, leading to the formation of the product.
• Optimum conditions for enzyme activity include ideal temperature, substrate concentration, pH balance, and the presence of inhibitors.

Factors Influencing Reactions

• The rate of enzyme-catalyzed reactions is affected by temperature, substrate concentration, pH, and the presence of competitive or non-competitive inhibitors.
• Cofactors are non-protein substances required for certain enzymes to be active, while coenzymes are organic molecules that serve as cofactors.

Substrate Interaction

• The substrate is the substance on which an enzyme acts, binding at the active site to form an enzyme-substrate complex.