THE 3-D STRUCTURE OF LYSOZYME

The drawing below shows the three-dimensional representation of the structure of a

molecule of lysozyme, an enzyme found in saliva and tears, as well as in some other
human body fluids. Lysozyme helps in the breakdown of bacterial cells.
















QUESTIONS

1. To what class of chemical compounds does lysozyme
belong? (1)
Lysozyme belongs to the globular proteins compounds family

2. What are the sub-units (monomers) of which enzymes such as lysozyme,
and other proteins are
composed? (1)
Amino-acids.
3. Explain the significance and role of the region labelled Active site
cleft. (4)
The active site is flexible, so when a substrate enters it, the enzyme molecule can
change shape to be able to fit around the substrate.

4. Why do you think lysozyme is found in saliva and
tears? (3)
I think lysozyme is found in saliva to up the reaction in the digestion. It is also
needed to speed up the breaking down of food reaction so that it can take place
when you eat and when food enters your mouth. However I think lysozyme is found
in tears to speed up the process of eliminating bacteria from the eyes surface and
removes infectious viruses.

5. ANALYSIS AND REASONING QUESTION: When the yellow bacterium
Micrococcus lutes comes into contact with lysozyme, the bacterial cell wall
is broken open and loses its yellow colour. Explain how this property could
enable you to find out which of saliva or tears contains the higher
concentration of lysozyme. (5)
Saliva must have a higher concentration of lysozyme so it has a lightly more yellow
colour than tears. Because a higher concentration of this Lysozyme means that more
bacteria cell walls can break open and release their yellow colour.

6. Explain why enzymes can be effective in very small
amounts. (2)
They are effective in small amounts because they cannot be destroyed or affected
by the reaction in which they are taking place and so they can be recycled.