Ap Biology Lab 1

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Enzyme Catalysis Lab Introduction: Enzymes are very important in the functioning of cells and allow constant life to exist. Enzymes are proteins that act as a catalyst which means that they affect reaction rates. Substrates which are the substances that are being catalyzed, stick together to an enzyme at the active site, which resembles a bonding site between them both. At this point, the enzyme speeds up the reaction that would occur slowly normally, and produces a product from the substrate. However, enzymes may sometimes fail to work properly for many reasons, and this “dead” enzyme is known to be denatured. One main factor that denatures an enzyme is the salt concentration. Having too little of a salt concentration would not allow the enzyme to function, and in the same way an overload of salt concentration would produce the same results. The pH level in which enzymes are located is also another determining factor of enzyme functionality. Certain enzymes are specific to pH levels at which they work best, and removing them from this environment may denature the enzyme. Much like pH levels, enzymes have an optimal temperature level, and again in a different temperature extreme, enzymes will denature. However, other than only environmental factors, enzymes can also have their reactions affected by both activators, which increase reaction rates, and inhibitors, which slow or stop reactions. In an experiment involving the unexpected lowering of pH in an enzyme's environment, we can see how the enzyme will become denatured because of this. Materials: 2A) Hydrogen peroxide, catalase solution, beakers/test tubes, pipette, ice for catalase, water for boiling, liver/potato tissue 2B) Hydrogen peroxide, water, sulfuric acid, potassium permaganate, beakers/test tubes, pipette 2C) Hydrogen peroxide, beakers/test tubes, sulfuric acid, potassium permaganate, pipette 2D)

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