How Enzymes Work in the Home and in Industry Essay

In this lab or experiment, the aim was to determine the following factors of enzymes: (1) the effects of enzymes concentration the catalytic rate or the rate of the reaction, (2) the effects of pH on a particular enzyme, an enzyme known and referred throughout this experiment as ALP (alkaline phosphate enzyme) and lastly (3) the effects of various temperatures on the reaction or catalytic rate. Throughout the experiment 8 separate cuvettes and tubes are mixed with various solutions (labeled as tables 1,3 & 4 in the apparatus/materials sections of the lab) and tested for the effects of the factors mentioned above (concentration, pH and temperature). The tubes labeled 1-4 are tested for pH with pH paper and by spectrophotometer, cuvettes 1a-4a was tested for concentration and cuvettes labeled 1b-4b was tested for temperature in four different atmospheric conditions (4ºC, 23ºC, 32ºC and 60ºC) to see how the enzyme solution was affected by the various conditions. After carrying out the procedures the results showed that the experiment followed the theory for the most part, which is that all the factors work best at its optimum level. So, the optimum pH that the enzymes reacted at was a pH of 7 (neutral), the optimum temperature that the reactions occurs with the enzymes is a temperature of 4ºC or

Of the thousands of enzymes known, there is a family of enzymes called proteases that catalyze a reaction of breaking down proteins. What do you think would happen if you added a protease to your sample of catalase before proceeding with your experiment?

Introduction:Enzymes are made up of proteins which are produced within living cells and act as catalysts which speed up chemical reactions. They are made up of long chains of amino acids containing carbon, hydrogen, oxygen and nitrogen. Enzymes are structured to be

Enzymes are biological catalysts, which speed up the rate of reaction without being used up during the reaction, which take place in living organisms. They do this by lowering the activation energy. The activation energy is the energy needed to start the reaction.

These results shown from this experiment led us to conclude that enzymes work best at certain pH rates. For this particular enzyme, pH 7 worked best. When compared to high levels of pH, the lower levels worked better. The wrong level of pH can denature enzymes; therefore finding the right level is essential. The independent variable was the amount of pH, and the dependent being the rate of oxygen. The results are reliable as they are reinforced by the fact that enzymes typically work best at neutral pH

Digestive enzymes in the gut include proteases, which digest proteins. Why don’t these enzymes digest the stomach and small intestine,

Enzymes are biological catalysts, which accelerate the speed of chemical reactions in the body without being used up or changed in the process. Animals and plants contain enzymes which help break down fats, carbohydrates and proteins into smaller molecules the cells can use to get energy and carry out the processes that allow the plant or animal to survive. Without enzymes, most physiological processes would not take place. Hundreds of different types of enzymes are present in plant and animal cells and each is very specific in its function.

Enzymes are a key aspect in our everyday life and are a key to sustaining life. They are biological catalysts that help speed up the rate of reactions. They do this by lowering the activation energy of chemical reactions (Biology Department, 2011).

Introduction: Enzymes are protein catalysts facilitating the conversion of substrates into products (Alexander and Peters, 2011). They go through a whole chemical reaction which starts off with the substrate and then ends up with a product. The only way this reaction can be adjusted or not even work is if they end up going through some sort of affect which only temperature and pH levels can do determining the environment. When enzymes are in an environment that is too acidic or alkaline, their chemical properties, sizes and shapes can become altered (Magher, 2015) Chemical modification of proteins is widely used as a too; to maintain a native conformation, improving stability (Rodriguez-Cabrera, Regalado, and Garcia-Almendarez, 2011) In this experiment, four trials were conducted and recorded every 15 seconds for 5 minutes in order to calculate the optimum levels and IRV.

“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].

Organisms cannot depend solely on spontaneous reactions for the production of materials because they occur slowly and are not responsive to the organism's needs (Martineau, Dean, et al, Laboratory Manual, 43). In order to speed up the reaction process, cells use enzymes as biological catalysts. Enzymes are able to speed up the reaction through lowering activation energy. Additionally, enzymes facilitate reactions without being consumed (manual,43). Each enzyme acts on a specific molecule or set of molecules referred to as the enzyme's substrate and the results of this reaction are called products (manual 43). As a result, enzymes promote a reaction so that substrates are converted into products on a faster pace (manual 43). Most enzymes are proteins whose structure is determined by its sequence of its amino acids. Enzymes are designed to function the best under physiological conditions of PH and temperature. Any change of these variables that change the conformation of the enzyme will destroy or enhance enzyme activity(manual, 43).

Enzymes are central to every biochemical process. Due to their high specificity they are capable of catalyzing hundreds of reactions that signifies their vast practical importance.

Enzymes are very specific in nature, which helps them in reactions. When an enzyme recognizes its specific substrate, the

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.

It is argued that biocatalysts are not efficient to be used in industry due to the fact that they are enzymes. Indeed, enzymes need to operate in an optimum environment. Some enzymes require an optimum temperature of 37 °C just like amylase enzyme that breaks down starch however, some enzymes require relatively high temperature to operate such as certain enzymes in some bacteria. If any sudden temperature change in the laboratory occurs, the enzyme would be denatured or stop functioning. Moreover, making an enzyme and maintaining its environment costs money, which is also a disadvantage. If the reactant that is being mixed with the biocatalyst has a different pH than the enzyme that is found in the catalyst, the active site (the site where molecules bind on an enzyme for a reaction to take place) would be altered and the enzyme would no longer be efficient or denatured (B, 2014). Another disadvantage that is usually discussed is how water is needed in adequate amount for biocatalysts process. Water acts as a solvent because it has a high boiling point and that of heat of vaporization which would help the enzyme to operate optimally. Moreover, some allergies can arise within individuals depending on how they are sensitive toward the enzyme used, especially if the