Some of the most invaluable materials in the body are the enzymes. Without them, digestion would be impossible and our bodies would not function properly.
What are Enzymes?
Enzymes are proteins that act as a catalyst for breaking down material. Enzymes in the human body are in neural cells, intestinal cells, and saliva.
Catalyst: A substance that accelerates a chemical reaction without being affected
There are four steps to enzyme function:
1. The enzyme and substrate must be in the area.
2. The enzyme and the substrate bond at the active site, forming the enzyme/substrate complex. In addition, another compound called the cofactor can be added to the enzyme/substrate complex (see top).
3. The enzyme changes the substrate into the product through a process known as catalase. At this point, the enzyme and product are still bonded. This is called the enzyme/product complex.
4. Finally, the enzyme releases the product and finds another substrate, thus completing the circle.
Enzymes make sure you digest properly and help with DNA coping.
But what would happen if we didn't have enzymes?
For one thing, there would be no digestion and DNA coping! And seeing how this is vital to the survival of organisms, these said organisms would no longer EXIST! Enzymes, then, are essential to the life of pretty much everything.How can enzymes be lost?
Enzymes can be warped, or denatured, by unnatural circumstances such as a raise in heat or pH. One example of the warping of enzymes is if you have a bad fever. Since enzymes are made into a very specific shape to bond with a certain substrate, these enzymes will not be able to do their job.After all this, I hope you have a greater understanding of enzymes and their effect on the environment and the organisms that use them. Good luck on the biology test!
Images (If you can't see them)
https://docs.google.com/a/students.mgsd.k12.nc.us/document/d/1MRtW_36mzW8rBC_qiDAm3SIa1h3gW5_c8DSN8xtuk6A/edit?usp=sharing
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