Enzymes

Active Site

the region on an enzyme where substrate molecules bind and undergo chemical reaction.

Allosteric Regulation

a process that can increase or decrease the activity of an enzyme by binding to a protein at a site other than its active site.

Amino Acids

organic compounds that combine to form proteins. They are the building blocks of life and are vital for a number of functions in the body.

Catalysis

the process by which catalysts speed up chemical reactions without being consumed or altered themselves.

Cofactor

a non-protein chemical compound or metallic ion that is required for an enzyme's activity.

Enzymes

biological catalysts that speed up chemical reactions in living organisms without being consumed in the process.

Induced Fit Mechanism

a process that occurs when an enzyme changes its shape slightly to accommodate the binding of a specific substrate.

Metabolic Processes

all the chemical reactions that occur within an organism to maintain life, including both breaking down substances for energy (catabolism) and building new cells and tissues (anabolism).

Photosynthesis

the process by which green plants, algae, and some bacteria use sunlight to synthesize foods with the help of chlorophyll pigments. They convert carbon dioxide and water into glucose (a type of sugar) and oxygen.

Polypeptide Chains

long sequences of amino acids linked by peptide bonds. They fold into specific shapes to form proteins.

Primary Structure

the sequence of amino acids that make up the protein. It's like the unique order of letters in a sentence.

Quaternary Structure

the way in which multiple polypeptide chains (proteins) come together and interact. It's the highest level of organization in a protein.

Respiration

the process by which cells break down simple food molecules such as glucose and release the energy they contain.

Secondary Structure

how those sequences or strings (primary structures) fold upon themselves due to hydrogen bonding between backbone elements. Common forms include alpha-helices and beta-sheets.

Substrate Molecules

reactants upon which enzymes act during biochemical reactions. They bind at an enzyme's active site and get converted into products through chemical reactions.

Substrate Specificity

refers to how particular enzymes can only catalyze certain substrates due their unique active site shapes and properties.

Tertiary Structure

a three-dimensional shape, formed by further folding and bending of the secondary structures into a complex shape due to interactions between side chains of amino acids.

Transition State

refers to the highest-energy state of a reaction, where old bonds are breaking and new ones are forming.

Activation Energy

the minimum amount of energy required to start a chemical reaction.

Activators

substances that increase the activity of enzymes, speeding up certain reactions in the body.

ATP Hydrolysis

the process by which water is used to break down ATP (adenosine triphosphate) into ADP (adenosine diphosphate), releasing energy stored in the phosphate bonds.

Biomolecules

organic molecules produced by living organisms. They include carbohydrates, proteins, lipids, and nucleic acids.

Catalysis

the process by which catalysts speed up chemical reactions without being consumed or altered themselves.

Catalyst

any substance that increases the rate of a chemical reaction by lowering its activation energy but remains unchanged itself after the reaction has occurred.

Chemical Reactions

a process that leads to the transformation of one set of chemical substances to another. It involves breaking and forming bonds between atoms.

Competitive Inhibitors

These are molecules that bind to the active site of an enzyme, preventing the substrate from binding and thus inhibiting the enzyme's function.

Constant Energy Input

This refers to the continuous supply of energy required by living organisms to perform various life processes, such as growth, reproduction, and maintenance.

Denaturation

the process by which a protein loses its native shape due to the disruption of weak interactions within the molecule, often caused by changes in temperature or pH.

DNA

is a molecule that carries most of the genetic instructions used in development, functioning and reproduction of all known living organisms.

Enzyme Catalysis

a process in which enzymes speed up biochemical reactions by lowering the activation energy required for the reaction to occur.

Enzyme-Substrate Complex

This is the intermediate formed when a substrate molecule interacts with the active site of an enzyme.

Enzyme-Substrate Recognition

This refers to how an enzyme recognizes its specific substrate (the molecule upon which an enzyme acts).

Enzymes

biological catalysts that speed up chemical reactions in living organisms without being consumed in the process.

Growth

refers to an increase in size, number or complexity of cells or whole organism over time due to cell division and differentiation.

Information Transfer

In biology, refers to how genetic information passes from DNA to RNA and then directs the synthesis of proteins.

Inhibitors

substances that reduce the activity of enzymes, slowing down or even stopping certain reactions in the body.

Macromolecules

Large complex molecules that make up living organisms; they include carbohydrates, proteins, lipids (fats), and nucleic acids.

Metabolism

refers to all chemical reactions involved in maintaining the living state of cells and organisms. It can be divided into two categories - catabolism (breaking down molecules) and anabolism (building up molecules).

Noncompetitive Inhibitors

are molecules that bind to an area other than an enzyme's active site, changing its shape so it can no longer effectively catalyze reactions with its normal substrates.

Nucleic Acids

are large biomolecules essential for all known forms of life. They include DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) and RNA (ribonucleic acid), which carry genetic information.

Optimal pH

refers to the specific value at which a particular enzymatic reaction occurs at its maximum rate. It varies for different enzymes based on their environment and nature.

Optimal Temperature

This is the temperature at which any given biological system operates most efficiently for maximum productivity or speed.

Products

are substances formed as results of a chemical reaction from reactants.

Protein Synthesis

is the process by which cells build proteins. This involves two main stages - transcription (where DNA is converted into RNA) and translation (where RNA is used to produce proteins).

Proteins

Large biomolecules consisting of one or more long chains of amino acid residues. Proteins perform a vast array of functions within organisms.

Reactants

substances present at the beginning of a chemical reaction which are consumed during the process.

Reproduction

the biological process by which new individuals of the same species are produced, either by a single parent (asexual reproduction) or two parents (sexual reproduction).

RNA

a molecule similar to DNA that plays a crucial role in protein synthesis and other chemical activities of the cell.

Saturation Point

the stage at which, under given conditions, a substance cannot absorb or dissolve any more of another substance.

Transition States

its a phase in a chemical reaction that has a particular configuration along the reaction path. It is defined as the state corresponding to the highest potential energy along this path.