Enzyme Lab Using Jello

Enzymes are biological catalysts that speed up chemical reactions, without being used up or changed. Catalase is a globular protein molecule that is found in all living cells. A globular protein is a protein with its molecules curled up into a 'ball' shape. All enzymes have an active site. This is where another molecule(s) can bind with the enzyme. This molecule is known as the substrate. When the substrate binds with the enzyme, a product is produced. Enzymes are specific to their substrate, because the shape of their active site will only fit the shape of their substrate. It is said that the substrate is complimentary to their substrate.

Enzymes are types of proteins that work as a substance to help speed up a chemical reaction (Madar & Windelspecht, 104). There are three factors that help enzyme activity increase in speed. The three factors that speed up the activity of enzymes are concentration, an increase in temperature, and a preferred pH environment. Whether or not the reaction continues to move forward is not up to the enzyme, instead the reaction is dependent on a reaction’s free energy. These enzymatic reactions have reactants referred to as substrates. Enzymes do much more than create substrates; enzymes actually work with the substrate in a reaction (Madar &Windelspecht, 106). For reactions in a cell it is

An enzyme is a protein that acts as a catalyst to form reaction, and see the activity of the

Enzymes are defined as catalysts that speed up chemical reactions but remain the same themselves. The shape of an enzyme enables it to receive one type of molecule and that specific molecule will fit into the enzyme’s shape. Where a substance fits into an enzyme is called the active site and the substance that fits into the active site is called a substrate. Several factors affect enzymes and the rate of their reactions. Temperature, pH, enzyme concentration, substrate concentration, and the presence of any inhibitors or activators can all affect enzymes. Temperature can affect enzymes because if the temperature gets too high, it can cause the enzyme to denature. pH can affect an enzyme by changing the shape of the enzyme or the charge properties of the substrate so that either the substrate cannot bind to the active site or it cannot undergo catalysis. Every enzyme has an ideal pH that it will strive in. Increasing substrate concentration increases the rate of reaction because more substrate molecules will be interacting and colliding with enzyme molecules, so more product will be formed. Inhibitors can affect enzymes and the rate of their reactions by either slowing down or stopping catalysis. The three types of inhibitors include competitive, non-competitive, and substrate inhibition.

Organisms cannot rely entirely on spontaneous reactions to produce all the materials necessary for life. These reactions occur much too slowly. To produce these materials quicker, cells rely on enzymes, biological catalysts, to speed up these reactions without being consumed. (General Biology I, Martineau, Dean, Gilliland, & Soderstrom, Lab Manual, 2017, 43). To produce these materials quicker, the activation reaction much be lowered, a very important part of this lab. Each enzyme acts on a specific molecule, or set of molecules, called a substrate (43). The enzyme binds to this substrate, forming an enzyme-substrate complex. An enzyme is a protein whose structure is determined by the sequence of amino acids groups that

Enzymes are proteins that act as catalysts during a biochemical process. Catalysts are non-changing enzymes that can increase or decrease activation energy to accelerate or slow down a biochemical reaction without using additional energy.

Enzymes are catalytic proteins, meaning they speed up – but do not create – chemical

J. Moldovan & B. Nilson, (2010), Lab 4 – Enzyme Kinetics, UBCO BIOL/BIOC 393, UBC Vista accessed Monday, November 8th, 2010.

Hypothesis: If compound X is placed into the test-tube with pineapple and gelatin, then after freezing it results in a solid; compound X is an inhibitor of bromelain.

“Enzymes are proteins that have catalytic functions” [1], “that speed up or slow down reactions”[2], “indispensable to maintenance and activity of life”[1]. They are each very specific, and will only work when a particular substrate fits in their active site. An active site is “a region on the surface of an enzyme where the substrate binds, and where the reaction occurs”[2].

Enzymes are very efficient catalysts for biochemical reactions. They speed up reactions by providing an alternative reaction pathway of lower activation energy. Like all catalysts, enzymes take part in the reaction - that is how they provide an alternative reaction pathway. But they do not undergo permanent changes and so remain unchanged at the end of the reaction. They can only alter the rate of reaction, not the position of the equilibrium. Enzymes are usually highly selective, catalyzing specific reactions only. This specificity is due to the shapes of the enzyme molecules.

In my Biological Concepts lab, we were put into groups of 3 or 4 where we worked on a pineapple enzyme lab. Dr. Frank provided us with the instructions and materials to work on this lab during class. From my understanding the purpose of this lab was to see how the Jell-O would react when mixed with three different types of pineapple juice. We used fresh pineapple juice, canned pineapple juice, and frozen pineapple juice and from this we developed data over time.

A substrate is a substance which is acted upon by an enzyme. An enzyme and a substrate together are commonly nicknamed “the key and the lock.” The “lock” gets it’s name from the 3D structure of an enzyme, the “key” is named for specifically fitting into only that “lock” (enzyme). Catalase is used to break down hydrogen peroxide into water and oxygen molecules. This process of breaking down molecules is necessary for preventing cell damage.

Enzymes are proteins that speed up chemical reactions in your body. Another name for an enzyme is a catalyst, a molecule that speeds up a chemical reaction. Enzymes speed up biochemical reactions in your body by lowering the activation energy of reactions that would normally happen (but at a much slower rate). Activation energy is the energy needed to start a reaction. Components of Enzyme Reactions: A substrate is the material the enzyme works on (example: lactose). The active site is the pocket or groove in the enzyme where the reaction happens (think of it like the mouth of the enzyme). The enzyme remains unchanged during and after the

Enzymes are proteins that act as catalysts and help reactions take place. In short, enzymes reduce the energy needed for a reaction to take place, permitting a reaction to take place more easily. Some enzymes are shape specific and reduce the energy for certain reactions. Enzymes have unique folds of the amino acid chain which result in specifically shaped active sites (Frankova Fry 2013). When substrates fit in the active site of an enzyme, then it is able to catalyze the reaction. Enzyme activity is affected by the concentrations of the enzymes and substrate present (Worthington 2010). As the incidence of enzyme increases, the rate of reaction increases. Additionally, as the incidence of substrate increases so does the rate of reaction.