An enzyme is essentially Protein. Enzymes are biological catalysts that facilitate biochemical reactions by speeding up the rate of reaction, enabling processes such as digestion, metabolism, and cellular signaling.
Share
Lost your password? Please enter your email address. You will receive a link and will create a new password via email.
An enzyme is fundamentally Protein. Enzymes are specialized proteins that catalyze biochemical reactions within living organisms. They function by lowering the activation energy required for a reaction to occur, thereby speeding up the rate of the reaction without being consumed in the process.
Enzymes are highly specific, each catalyzing a particular chemical reaction or group of reactions. They achieve this specificity through their unique three-dimensional structure, which is determined by their amino acid sequence. This structure includes an active site where the substrate, the molecule upon which the enzyme acts, binds, facilitating the catalytic process.
Enzymes play crucial roles in various physiological processes, including digestion, metabolism, DNA replication, and cellular signaling. Without enzymes, these processes would occur too slowly to sustain life. While enzymes are predominantly proteins, some RNA molecules, known as ribozymes, also exhibit catalytic activity.