Enzyme Review

Front

What are enzymes?

Back

Enzymes are biological catalysts that speed up chemical reactions in living organisms by lowering the activation energy required for the reaction.

Front

What is activation energy?

Back

Activation energy is the minimum amount of energy required to initiate a chemical reaction.

Front

What factors affect enzyme activity?

Back

Factors include pH, temperature, enzyme concentration, substrate concentration, and the presence of inhibitors.

Front

What is the active site of an enzyme?

Back

The active site is the specific region on an enzyme where the substrate binds and the reaction occurs.

Front

What is the enzyme-substrate complex?

Back

The enzyme-substrate complex is the temporary complex formed when an enzyme binds to its substrate.

Front

What does it mean for an enzyme to be reusable?

Back

An enzyme is reusable because it remains unchanged after catalyzing a reaction and can be used again for subsequent reactions.

Front

What is inhibition in the context of enzymes?

Back

Inhibition occurs when a molecule competes with the substrate for the active site, reducing the enzyme's activity.

Front

What is the difference between competitive and non-competitive inhibition?

Back

Competitive inhibition occurs when an inhibitor competes with the substrate for the active site, while non-competitive inhibition occurs when an inhibitor binds to a different part of the enzyme, changing its shape.

Front

How does temperature affect enzyme activity?

Back

Temperature affects enzyme activity; generally, as temperature increases, enzyme activity increases until an optimal temperature is reached, after which activity declines due to denaturation.

Front

What is the role of pH in enzyme activity?

Back

Each enzyme has an optimal pH range; deviations from this range can lead to decreased activity or denaturation.