Enzymes

• Enzymes are biological catalysts: they speed up chemical reactions by reducing the activation energy
• What are the 2 types of metabolism that enzymes work on?

  Anabolic: small molecules -> big molecules

  Catabolic: big molecules -> small molecules
• Enzymes are globular proteins (compact, spherical shapes that have at least a tertiary structure). The specifically shaped region is called the active site, and each enzyme fits with a specific substrate (specificity)
• What are the 2 types of enzymes?

  Intracellular and extracellular
• What are intracellular enzymes?

  Enzymes that are produced and used within a cell, e.g. reactions occurring in the cytoplasm (some stages of respiration)
• What are extracellular enzymes?

  Enzymes that are secreted out of cells, e.g. digestive enzymes