Enzymes (prac exam) Flashcards
What’s an enzyme?
Enzymes are large globular proteins which act as biological catalysts in metabolism.
What is the chemical composition of enzymes?
Enzymes are comprised of large chains of amino-acids
What is a cofactor and what to they do?
Cofactors are a non-protein group wich assist in the formation of active sites on enzymes. (usually a metal ion or vitamin)
What is the role of enzymes in metabolism?
The role of enzymes in metabolism is to accelerate the rate of reaction and lower the activation energy needed for these reactions to occur by providing an alternate reaction pathway.
What do enzymes do to activation energy?
enzymes lower the activation energy needed for reactions in the body to occur
2 models of how an enzyme works:
1) lock and key
2) Induced fit
why do we use models?
we use models to simplify systems and to allow demonstrations of processes that occur beyond the limitations of the human eye to observe
characteristics of enzymes:
Enzymes are temperature and pH sensitive
what does catalase do and what does it break down?
catalase is an enzyme found in most organisms that are exposed to oxygen. its function is to decompose hydrogen peroxide (H2o2) into h2o and o2.
what is hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) a byproduct of in the body?
H2O2 is a byproduct of the breakdown of fatty acids, and its decomposition is essential in the maintenance of a stable internal environment as it is highly toxic.
What is an inhibitor and name the 2 types
An inhibitor is a particular substance slows down the rate of metabolism. There are reversible and irreversible inhibitors.
define: accuracy
Accuracy is how close to the value calculated from the experiment is to the accepted true value
define: validity
Validity is how appropriate the procedure ad materials are to achieve a desired experimental result
define: reliability
reliability is how repeatable and consistent the experiment is.
