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Importance of enzymes
Applications of enzymes in medicine
Three uses of enzymes in industry
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Recommended: Importance of enzymes
Uses of Enzymes in Medicine and Industry
Enzymes are used widely across medicine and industry. Through this
essay I will go through some examples of each case, and explain the
complexities of these examples.
Enzymes are biological catalysts that enable specific reactions to
take place. Catalysts are widely used in industry, to increase the
rate of a reaction, or allow the reaction to take place without
resorting to high temperatures and pressures.
One of the
most important and widely used enzymes in industry and everyday life
is the catalytic converter in cars. They are devices incorporated into
the exhaust system of cars which use catalysts to convert pollutant
gases into harmless products.
Another
example of enzymes used in industry is the major role in the brewing
industry. The yeast converts sugars into alcohol and carbon dioxide.
However, these sugars are stored as starch in plants, consequently
this meant the process of malting had to be undertaken. This process
was relatively expensive and hard to control, therefore industrial
enzymes such as amylases, glucanases and proteases were added to
catalyse the malting process and make it easier to control. Therefore
producing the required sugars for the yeast to react on. In addition
enzymes aid the filtration process, because of the polysaccharides,
xylans and glucans present in the final beer. This often results in
It takes longer to break down the large molecules rather than the smaller molecules. This means that the yeast does not need to do any work when provided with small molecule foods such as glucose. The small molecule foods allow the yeast to respire easily. By already h... ... middle of paper ... ...
Enzymes are biological catalysts, which are proteins that help speed up chemical reactions. Enzymes use reactants, known as the substrates, and are converted into products. Through this chemical reaction, the enzyme itself is not consumed and can be used over and over again for future chemical reactions, but with the same substrate and product formed. Enzymes usually only convert specific substrates into products. Substrates bind to the region of an enzyme called the active site to form the enzyme/substrate complex. Then this becomes the enzyme/products complex, and then the products leave the enzyme. The activity of enzymes can be altered based on a couple of factors. Factors include pH, temperature and others. These factors, if they become
Enzymes are used to carry out reactions in a rapid manner otherwise the reaction would occur very slowly thus not being able to sustain life. Enzymes bind to a substrate that is specific to their task and then conforms into a product that is needed; the enzyme is then able to catalyze more of the same reaction. Enzymes and substrates act as a lock and a key since enzymes are made for a specific substrate and is able to form an enzyme-substrate complex (Department of Biology). Thus changes of the shape of an enzyme can inhibit its ability to catalyze a reaction. If the enzyme shape is alternated due to environmental conditions, it is denatured and can no longer act as a catalyst. Peroxidase is the type of enzyme used in this
Background information:. Enzyme Enzymes are protein molecules that act as the biological catalysts. A Catalyst is a molecule which can speed up chemical reactions but remains unchanged at the end of the reaction. Enzymes catalyze most of the metabolic reactions that take place within a living organism. They speed up the metabolic reactions by lowering the amount of energy.
Enzymes are biological catalysts - catalysts are substances that increase the rate of chemical reactions without being altered itself. Enzymes are also proteins that fold into complex shapes that allow smaller molecules to fit into them. The place where these substrate molecules fit is called the active site. The active site is the region of an enzyme where substrate molecules bind and undergo a chemical reaction. The active site consists of residues that form temporary bonds with the substrate and residues that catalyse a reaction of that substrate. (Clark, 2016)
Enzymes are biology catalysts which speed up the rate of a reaction (BBC News). Catalase is an enzyme which is found in one’s body and can destroy any harmful substances. Without catalase, many toxic materials could attack and mutate DNA. Catalase is located in the hepatic and when mixed with hydrogen peroxide, it breaks it down into oxygen and water. When the reaction happens it follows this equation: 2H2O2 → 2H2O + O2 ("Catalase.").
The purpose of this investigation is to test the effects of multiple sugar substances on the respiration of yeast. Most people think of yeast when they think of what makes bread rise, cheese, alcoholic beverages, or other food products. Another type of yeast can also cause yeast infections, an infection of the skin. Yeasts (Saccharomyces) are tiny, microscopic organisms with a thin membrane and are usually oval or circular-shaped. They are a type of single-celled fungi of the class Ascomycetes, capable of processing sugar into alcohol and carbon dioxide (CO2 ) ; this process is known as fermentation. Fermentation and the products are the main focus points for this experiment being that cellular respiration of yeasts happens via the process of fermentation, which creates by-products of alcohol and CO2. The level of CO2 produced by the yeasts will show how effective each sugar substance is in providing cellular energy for the yeasts.
During the fermentation process, the starches in the grain or fruit are broken down through saccharification into sugars and then the sugars are broken down into alcohol. This process is sped up greatly by the infusion of sugar, yeast, and/or malt. In whiskey making, the basic fermenting mixture of grain, water, and other ingredients is called “mash”. To go from the fermented mash to alcohol requires the additional step of distillation. In this process, the essence, of the fermented liquid, is separated from the water through heating to appropriate temperature.
Enzymes in general are very interesting to learn from and are fundamental in carrying out processes in various organisms. Enzymes are proteins that control the speed of reactions, they help quicken the rate of the reaction and also help cells to communicate with each other. There are 3 main groups of enzymes, first are the metabolic enzymes that control breathing, thinking, talking, moving, and immunity. Next are the digestive enzymes that digest food and normally end with –ase, there are 22 known digestive enzymes and examples of these are Amylase, Protease, and Lipase. The final group are the Food or plant enzymes which is what my enzyme that I’m studying falls under. Papain gets its name because it comes from papaya fruit, its main purpose is to break down proteins and break peptide bonds however it is not only used in the Papaya fruit and has many external uses. It was also very helpful in the 1950s when scientists were trying to understand enzymes. It also helps us to this day understand Protein structural studies and peptide mapping. Without enzymes, reactions in the body would not happen fast enough and would tarnish our way of life which is why it is vital that we study and learn from them.
All the systems in the human body work together to maintain homeostasis and normal body function. The five major systems are the digestive, circulatory, respiratory, transportation and excretory systems. These systems are then, in turn made of organs, tissue and cells. All the systems are interrelated therefore if one system fails then it impacts the others.
The Advantages and Disadvantages of Using Enzymes in Medicine and Industry What is an enzyme? = == ==
Abstract: Enzymes are catalysts therefore we can state that they work to start a reaction or speed it up. The chemical transformed due to the enzyme (catalase) is known as the substrate. In this lab the chemical used was hydrogen peroxide because it can be broken down by catalase. The substrate in this lab would be hydrogen peroxide and the enzymes used will be catalase which is found in both potatoes and liver. This substrate will fill the active sites on the enzyme and the reaction will vary based on the concentration of both and the different factors in the experiment. Students placed either liver or potatoes in test tubes with the substrate and observed them at different temperatures as well as with different concentrations of the substrate. Upon reviewing observations, it can be concluded that liver contains the greater amount of catalase as its rates of reaction were greater than that of the potato.
Enzymes are protein molecules that are made by organisms to catalyze reactions. Typically, enzymes speeds up the rate of the reaction within cells. Enzymes are primarily important to living organisms because it helps with metabolism and the digestive system. For example, enzymes can break larger molecules into smaller molecules to help the body absorb the smaller pieces faster. In addition, some enzyme molecules bind molecules together. However, the initial purpose of the enzyme is to speed up reactions for a certain reason because they are “highly selective catalysts” (Castro J. 2014). In other words, an enzyme is a catalyst, which is a substance that increases the rate of a reaction without undergoing changes. Moreover, enzymes work with
By taking a Carbon Dioxide, rich substance and mixing it with a yeast, solution fermentation will occur, and then it could be determined if it is a good energy-producer. In this study glacatose, sucrose, glycine, glucose, and water were used to indicate how fast fermentation occurred. The overall result shows that monosaccharides in particular galactose and glucose were the best energy source for a cell.
All types of alcohol go through a fermentation process, when looking sthe production beer, the fermentation process contains a series of distinct stages. Beer includes four main ingredients; some sort of grain (wheat, corn, barley), hops, water, and yeast. The beer process begins with the malting process, the stage where the grain is soaked in water for days to allow adequate germination time. This process is important because allowing the grain to germinate produces enzymes that are need to break down starch in succeeding steps. At times, the conversion of starch to sugar can begin during malting due to enzymes present within the grain, but the majority of the conversions begin in the next step (Michaels, 2010). Following the malting process, the grains go through a process called mashing, defined as the stage where the grain is hydrated causing the enzymes to activate and begin converting the starches into sugars. In the mashing stage enzymes are activated and begin to convert starch into sugars that will eventually go through the fermentation process.