Enzyme and

Digestion
Experiment 3
Enzymes
Introduction
• Cells produce special proteins known as enzymes that catalyze
biological reactions by lowering the activation energy of the
reaction.
• The reactant broken down by enzyme is called the substrate.
• The active site of an enzyme is that portion of the molecule
responsible for its catalytic action.
• One outstanding property of an enzyme is its high specificity
(it acts only on one substrate), group-specific (e.g., pepsin will
hydrolyze only soluble native proteins), linkage-specific (it
breaks the bonds only between specific groups like thrombin
breaking the bond between arginine and glycine in the
fibrinogen molecule), or reaction-specific (e.g., hydrolase,
oxido-reductases, polymerases)
Classification of enzymes
1. Oxidoreductases
2. Transferases
3. Hydrolases
4. Lyases
5. Isomerases
6. Ligases
Oxidoreductases
■ Oxidation and reduction
● Oxidation – removal of H ion
● Reduction – accept H ion
● E.C. 1.1.1.27 : L-lactate NAD+ Oxidoreductase
■ Lactate Dehydrogenase
Transferases
■ Transfer of functional groups other than
hydrogen from one substrate to another
● E.C. 2.6.1.1 : L-Aspartate: 2-Oxaloglutarate
Aminotransferase
■ Aspartate Aminotransferase
Hydrolases
■ Hydrolysis of various bonds
■ Addition of water to a bond resulting in bond
breakage
● E.C. 3.2.1.1 : 1,4-D-Glucan Glucanohydrolase
■ Alpha-Amylase
Lyases
■ Addition of a group to a double bond or the
removal of a group to form a double bond
● Carbonic Anhydrase
● Citrate Lyase
Isomerase
■ Rearrange the functional groups within a
molecule and catalyze the conversion of one
isomer into another
● Phosphoglycerate mutase
Ligases
• Catalyze a reaction in which C-C, C-S, C-
O, or C-N bond is made or broken
• Accompanied by an ATP-ADP
interconversion
• Chemically, enzymes are either simple proteins or a protein
(apoenzyme) combined with a non-protein unit (a cofactor).
• If the cofactor is an organic unit, it is called as a coenzyme.
• If the cofactor is a metal-ion, it is called a metal-ion activator.
• The two parts (protein and non-protein) constitute a
haloenzyme.
• The rate of enzyme activity is influenced by many factors.
• These factors include:
• Temperature
• Hydrogen ion concentration (pH)
• Substrate concentration
• Enzyme concentration
Digestion
Introduction
• Most foods are complex substances that must be broken down
into smaller molecules that can be absorbed and utilized by the
cells of the body.
• Digestion involves hydrolysis of proteins to amino acids, of
starches to monosaccharides, and of fats to fatty acids and
glycerol.
• The enzymes needed are hydrolases.
• Digestion takes place in the mouth, the stomach, and the small
intestine.
• The passage of food through the digestive tract occurs as
follows:
• Mouth (1st), esophagus (2nd), stomach (3rd), small intestine (4th), large
intestine (5th)
The principal digestive juices are the
following:
1. Saliva
2. Gastric juice from the glands in the walls of the
stomach
3. Pancreatic juices (secreted by the pancreas)
4. Bile (secreted by the liver)
5. Intestinal juice (secreted by the intestinal mucosal
cells)