Enzymes in Industry, Action, and Characteristics of Life

Vocabulary flashcards covering enzyme structure, specificity, induced fit model, factors affecting enzyme action, industrial/medical uses of enzymes, and characteristics of life.

Bioprocessing

The use of enzymes or cells to make a product through a controlled process.

Bioreactor

A specialised vessel in which conditions such as temperature, environmental pH, oxygen levels, and substrate concentration can be carefully controlled to make products more efficiently.

Biofuel

A fuel made from biological materials such as plant or food waste, which serves as a renewable alternative to fossil fuels.

Bioethanol

A renewable, alcohol-based liquid fuel made by fermenting sugars (such as glucose or sucrose) using enzymes in yeast.

Biogas

A renewable fuel made when enzymes in microorganisms (bacteria) break down organic waste (such as plant material or animal waste) in anaerobic conditions.

Lactase

An enzyme that converts lactose into glucose and galactose to make milk digestible for people with lactose intolerance.

Glucose oxidase

An enzyme used in biosensors to monitor blood sugar in diabetic patients.

Urease

An enzyme used in kidney function tests to measure urea levels in blood or urine to assess kidney health.

Optimum activity

The state in which enzymes are working at their maximum rate.

Denatured

The state of an enzyme when its folded shape is permanently changed, especially at the active site, preventing it from binding to its specific substrate.

Pepsin

An enzyme found in the stomach that functions best in acidic conditions around $\text{pH } 2$.

Induced fit model

A model of enzyme action proposing that when a substrate approaches an enzyme, the active site changes shape slightly to mould around the substrate more closely and form an enzyme-substrate complex.

Enzyme action

A measure of how quickly an enzyme converts a substrate into a product.

Saturation point

The stage in substrate concentration when all active sites in an enzyme are completely occupied by substrate molecules, resulting in a maximum reaction rate.

Emil Fischer

The German chemist who proposed the lock-and-key theory in 1894 to explain specificity in enzymes.

Daniel Koshland

The American scientist who advanced enzyme theory in 1958 by proposing the induced fit theory.

Substrate

The specific substance that an enzyme works on during a chemical reaction.

Product

The substance or substances produced by enzyme action at the end of a process.

Active site

The special part of an enzyme that slightly changes its shape to match that of the substrate.

Specificity

The property of an enzyme referring to the complementary nature between its active site and substrate, allowing it to act on only one substrate.

Organism

Any living thing.

Biodiversity

The wide variety of life present on Earth.