Enzymes

Front

What is an enzyme?

Back

An enzyme is a protein that acts as a catalyst to speed up chemical reactions by lowering the activation energy required.

Front

How do enzymes speed up reactions?

Back

Enzymes speed up reactions by lowering the activation energy needed to start the reaction.

Front

What is the active site of an enzyme?

Back

The active site is the specific region on an enzyme where substrates bind and undergo a chemical reaction.

Front

What do enzymes typically end with?

Back

Enzymes typically end with the suffix '-ase', such as 'lactase' or 'amylase'.

Front

What is the Lock and Key hypothesis?

Back

The Lock and Key hypothesis suggests that the enzyme's active site (the 'lock') is a perfect fit for a specific substrate (the 'key').

Front

What is the Induced Fit hypothesis?

Back

The Induced Fit hypothesis proposes that the active site of an enzyme changes shape to better fit the substrate upon binding.

Front

What factors can affect enzyme activity?

Back

Factors that can affect enzyme activity include temperature, pH, substrate concentration, and the presence of inhibitors or activators.

Front

What is a substrate in the context of enzymes?

Back

A substrate is the reactant molecule that an enzyme acts upon during a chemical reaction.

Front

What role do cofactors play in enzyme activity?

Back

Cofactors are non-protein molecules that assist enzymes in catalyzing reactions, often by helping to stabilize the enzyme-substrate complex.

Front

What is enzyme specificity?

Back

Enzyme specificity refers to the ability of an enzyme to choose exact substrates from a group of similar chemical molecules.