Maths Skill: Calculating pH If the hydrogen ion (H+) concentration of a solution is known, the pH can be calculated using the equation: pH = -log₁₀ [H⁺] You can find the ‘log’ function on yo...
Rate: pH All enzymes have an optimum pH or a pH at which they operate best Enzymes are denatured at extremes of pH Hydrogen and ionic bonds hold the tertiary structure of the protein (ie. th...
Rate: Temperature Enzymes have a specific optimum temperature – the temperature at which they catalyse a reaction at the maximum rate Lower temperatures either prevent reactions from proceed...
Maths Skill: Using a Tangent to Find Initial Rate of Reaction For linear graphs (i.e. graphs with a straight-line), the gradient is the same throughout This makes it easy to calculate the ra...
Maths Skill: Drawing a Graph for Enzyme Rate Experiments Enzyme rate experiments are experiments that are carried out to determine the effect of changing a particular factor on the rate of a...
Required Practical: Measuring Enzyme Activity The progress of enzyme-catalysed reactions can be investigated by: Measuring the rate of formation of a product using catalase Measuring the rat...
How Enzymes Work The lock-and-key hypothesis Enzymes are globular proteins This means their shape (as well as the shape of the active site of an enzyme) is determined by the complex tertiary...
Mode of Enzyme Action Enzymes have an active site where specific substrates bind forming an enzyme-substrate complex The active site of an enzyme has a specific shape to fit a specific subst...
The Molecular Structure of Collagen Collagen is the most common structural protein found in vertebrates In vertebrates it is the component of connective tissue which forms: Tendons Cartilage...
