Essay Enzymes: Enzyme and Ph Levels

Submitted By firelounge
Words: 459
Pages: 2

Clyde Harris
4/24/2014
Professor Smyth
Biology 1101
Enzymes
Enzymes are very effective and critical molecules that help speed up any given reaction that they come across. They assist cells by speeding up certain cellular activities such as metabolic and chemical reactions. Though they are highly effective with catalyzing reactions, enzymes are very delicate, meaning various situations can easily hinder their process. For instance temperature, temperature is kind of like a double edge sword to enzymes, warmer temperatures are more favorable to enzymes, activates them and even helps them speed up their reaction time. But raise the temperature to extreme heat levels and you end up shutting down the enzyme, in other words causing it to become denatured which will render it ineffective. Cold temperatures on the other hand slow down and even stop enzymatic reactions, this way you can preserve an enzyme and not make it activate until you want it to, likewise extreme cold temperatures will also render it useless. Another aspect that can alter the behavior of enzymes are pH levels. PH levels are the ranges on a pH scale of zero to fourteen, which then depicts acidity to basicity, with neutral being in the middle. So almost everything in the world falls somewhere on the pH scale, for instance a base being bleach which is above seven on the scale, an acid being soda which is below seven on the scale, and neutral being water which is directly seven on the scale. Enzyme reactions are also effected by the pH levels of whatever substance it is being applied to, to catalyze. That being said enzymes are adaptive and each have something called optimal pH, which are the pH levels they are most responsive at. At sufficient levels enzymes will carry on their reactions normally, but any altercation within the pH levels