Enzymes Lab Report
Enzymes Lab Report
Inroduction
In this lab we explore an enzymes activity and how it can be affected by changes to its environment. An enzyme is a protein and is a catalyst to chemical reactions. It helps accelerate reactions by lowering the activation energy, which is needed for reactions in cells to progress at a higher rate. Activation energy is the minimum amount of energy needed for a chemical reaction to occur, yielding products from a given set of reactants. (Unit 7: Enzymes lab) Products are results of the an enzyme cleaving to a specific substrate, by means of an induced fit. The induced fit is located at the active site of the enzyme or region of the enzyme where the substrate is bound. The substrate is the reactant within the reaction that fits with the enzyme like a key into a lock. Once the substrate enters the enzyme’s active site the enzyme can flexibly change shape to more snugly bind, via the induced fit, to form an enzyme-substrate complex. The substrate is then metabolized or broken down, resulting in a product, which can be utilized to energize cells. Once the product is released from the active site the enzyme returns to it’s original form. The main objective of this lab was to take the enzyme lactase and observe how well it acts as a catalyst to the substrates lactose and maltose while in varying environments. Lactase’s effectiveness was studied in an environment with differing temperatures, pHs, and while placed with a cofactor, an enzyme catalyst assistant. The environment’s pH can range from 1-14, 7 being neutral, 7-1 being more and more acidic towards 1, and 8-14 being more and more basic towards 14. The product that was measuring to determine the enzyme’s performance was glucose, a monomer or small molecule, of the polymers, consisting of bound monomers, lactose and maltose. We hypothesized that lower temperatures would cause the enzyme to slow down and at higher temperatures it would unravel or go through
Inroduction
In this lab we explore an enzymes activity and how it can be affected by changes to its environment. An enzyme is a protein and is a catalyst to chemical reactions. It helps accelerate reactions by lowering the activation energy, which is needed for reactions in cells to progress at a higher rate. Activation energy is the minimum amount of energy needed for a chemical reaction to occur, yielding products from a given set of reactants. (Unit 7: Enzymes lab) Products are results of the an enzyme cleaving to a specific substrate, by means of an induced fit. The induced fit is located at the active site of the enzyme or region of the enzyme where the substrate is bound. The substrate is the reactant within the reaction that fits with the enzyme like a key into a lock. Once the substrate enters the enzyme’s active site the enzyme can flexibly change shape to more snugly bind, via the induced fit, to form an enzyme-substrate complex. The substrate is then metabolized or broken down, resulting in a product, which can be utilized to energize cells. Once the product is released from the active site the enzyme returns to it’s original form. The main objective of this lab was to take the enzyme lactase and observe how well it acts as a catalyst to the substrates lactose and maltose while in varying environments. Lactase’s effectiveness was studied in an environment with differing temperatures, pHs, and while placed with a cofactor, an enzyme catalyst assistant. The environment’s pH can range from 1-14, 7 being neutral, 7-1 being more and more acidic towards 1, and 8-14 being more and more basic towards 14. The product that was measuring to determine the enzyme’s performance was glucose, a monomer or small molecule, of the polymers, consisting of bound monomers, lactose and maltose. We hypothesized that lower temperatures would cause the enzyme to slow down and at higher temperatures it would unravel or go through
Cited: anonymous. Lactose Intolerance and Health. Evidence Report/Technology Assessment Number 192. Minnesota Evidence-based Practice, Minnesota, MN. Kouchakoff, P. 1930. Influence of Food Cooking on the Blood Formula of Man. pages 1-4. Baker, M. Fossil Implies Our Early Kin Lived in Trees, Study Says. National Geographic News. November 21, 2002. page 1.