ENZYMES – FULL EXPLANATION
ENZYMES – FULL EXPLANATION Enzymes are biological catalysts that increase the rate of chemical reaction in the body. They are all produced inside cells. Some are intracellular and they catalyse reactions within the cells. Others are extracellular and are secreted out of the cells where they work e.g. digestive enzymes Properties of Enzymes Enzymes are protein in nature Enzymes are specific to the type of reaction they catalyse This is referred to as substrate specificity Enzymes work in very small amounts They remain unchanged after the reaction They catalyse reversible reactions They work very fast (high turnover numbers) e.g. the enzyme catalase works on 600 thousand molecules of hydrogen peroxide in one second Naming of enzymes Enzymes are named by adding the suffix -ase to: Name of substrate that they work on e.g. Carbohydrates – carbohydrases e.g. sucrase Starch (amylose) – amylase Protein – proteinase (protease) Lipids -lipases… Read More »ENZYMES – FULL EXPLANATION