biology

• Enzymes


  Catalysts made by living organisms
• Enzymes


  • They are large proteins made up of long chains of amino acids
  • They can fold into different shapes, each shape catalyzing a particular chemical reaction
• How enzymes work


  1. Enzyme has an active site with a unique shape

  2. Substrate fits into active site

  3. Enzyme speeds up the chemical reaction
• Substrate


  Reactant in a chemical reaction
• Products


  Smaller pieces that a substrate is broken into
• Enzymes speed up the process of chemical reactions without being consumed or permanently altered
• Lock and key model

  • Substrate has to fit perfectly into the active site of the enzyme, like a key in a lock
• Induced fit model


  • Enzyme changes shape slightly to better fit the substrate, like a hand fitting into a rubber glove
• The induced fit model is more realistic than the lock and key model
• The active site of an enzyme is complementary to the substrate
• Organelles


  Also called subcellular structures, the parts that make up a cell like the nucleus, ribosomes and mitochondria
• Organelles


  • Each individual organelle has a specific role to play
  • When combined, multiple organelles will form a single cell
• Cells


  Come in all sorts of shapes and sizes and contain different combinations and numbers of organelles
• Specialized cells


  Different types of cells like epithelial cells, muscle cells and glandular cells
• Tissues


  A group of similar cells that work together to carry out a particular function
• Tissues


  • Epithelial tissue
  • Muscle tissue
  • Glandular tissue
• Organs


  A group of different tissues that work together to perform a particular function
• Organs


  • Stomach
  • Pancreas
  • Liver
• Organ systems


  A group of organs that work together to perform a particular function
• Organism


  The highest level, with multiple organ systems working together
• Other examples


  • Skin
  • Teeth
  • Lungs
  • Spleen
  • Bones
  • Testes
  • Immune system
  • Nervous system
  • Respiratory system
  • Endocrine system
  • Urinary system
• The enzyme catalyzes the reaction by lowering the activation energy required for the reaction to occur, resulting in faster rates of reaction.
• Enzyme-substrate complex is formed when the substrate binds to an active site on the enzyme.
• Enzymes are biological catalysts that speed up chemical reactions without being consumed or altered during the process.