1. Why is the temperature of pasteurization 60°C?

Pasteurization is the process by which food products are mildly heated to kill off harmful
bacteria, salmonella, and other disease-causing pathogens. Thus, these products are made safe
for consumption. In 1864, French chemist Louis Pasteur conducted a series of experiments
demonstrating the antimicrobial effects of heating wine. Furthermore, heating the recently
made wine to a temperature of approximately 60°C for a short period of time kills off
pathogenic bacteria that may have otherwise been present in the liquid. In addition, he also
deactivated certain enzymes that cause early spoilage.

Temperature is one of the different factors that may affect the activity of enzymes. With that
being stated, enzymes have an optimum level of temperature for them to be activated. Too low,
it will be inactive, too high then it could cause the enzyme to denature thus losing its ability to
bind to a substrate. In addition, 60°C is already beyond the optimum level of temperature for
enzymes thus causing them to denature. Hence, it is deactivated which prevented early
spoilage of food.

2. Why are foods frozen at temperatures below zero?

- Foods frozen at temperatures below zero retards the growth of microorganisms and slow down the
chemical changes that affect the quality or cause food to spoil.

RS 1. What factors influence the activity of enzymes?

- The different factors that influence or affect the activity of enzymes are temperature, pH, and
concentration (enzyme and substrate). Enzymes work best within specific temperature and pH
ranges, and sub-optimal conditions can cause an enzyme to lose its ability to bind to a substrate

TEMPERATURE
When temperature increases, it speeds up the reaction. On the other hand, when the
temperature decreases, it slows down a reaction. However, extremely high
temperatures can cause an enzyme to denature or lose its shape and may stop working.

pH
Enzymes have an optimum pH range. If the pH of an enzyme is outside its range, it will
slow down enzyme activity. On the contrary, extreme pH values can cause the enzymes
to denature

ENZYME CONCENTRATION
Increasing the enzyme concentration speeds up the reaction for as long as there is
substrate available to bind to. Once all of the substrates have bound, the reaction will
no longer speed up, since there will be nothing for additional enzymes to bind to.

SUBSTRATE CONCENTRATION
Increasing substrate concentration also increases the rate of reaction to a certain point.
Once all of the enzymes have bound, any substrate increase will have no effect on the
 rate of reaction, as the available enzymes will be saturated and working at their
maximum rate.

RS 2. How do enzymes work? Describe the different mechanisms involved.

- Generally, enzymes help speed up chemical reactions in the human body. They are essential for
respiration, digestion of food, muscle, and nerve function, among thousands of other roles.
Furthermore, enzymes provide help with facilitating chemical reactions within each cell.

An enzyme attracts substrates to its active site which catalyzes the chemical reaction by which
products are formed and then allows the products to dissociate which means separate from the
enzyme surface). The combination formed by an enzyme and its substrate is called an enzyme-
substrate complex.