Enzymes

• Enzymes are made of proteins/ chains of amino acids.
• Enzymes are biological catalysts and speed up the rate of reaction.
• Enzymes have an active site that is complementary to the substrate.
• The enzyme-substrate complex forms when the substrate binds with the active site on the enzyme.
• Temperature and pH affect the rate of enzyme action. Too high temperature or pH results in the enzyme becoming denatured. This changes the active site shape so the substrate can no longer bind to it.
• The correct temperature and pH for enzymes are called optimum temperature or optimum pH.
• Lipids are broken down into glycerol and fatty acids. The enzyme which does this is lipase.
• Proteins are broken down into amino acids. The enzyme that does this is called protease.
• Starches are broken down into glucose. The enzyme that does this is called amylase.
• At low temperatures, the number of successful collisions between the

  enzyme and substrate is reduced because their molecular movement

  decreases. The reaction is slow.