Enzyme Catalysis

Catalysis is a phenomenon in which the rate of a reaction is sped up or slowed down by the use of a catalyst (the catalyst does not participate in the reaction; its concentration and composition remain unchanged). A catalyst is a substance that is used to influence the rate of a reaction. Enzymes are a type of catalyst that helps to speed up and facilitate a variety of important metabolic events in plants and animals. Enzyme catalysis is a type of catalysis in which enzymes function as a catalyst. Enzymes are nitrogen-containing complex molecules. These substances are produced spontaneously in the bodies of animals and plants. When dissolved in water, enzymes have a high molecular mass and form a heterogeneous mixture. These proteins have a high efficiency and are responsible for a variety of processes in living beings’ bodies.

Characteristics of enzyme catalysis:

• A single enzyme catalyst molecule can convert up to a million molecules of reactant every second. As a result, enzyme catalysts are believed to be extremely effective.
• These biological catalysts are specific to specific types of reactions, hence they can’t be employed in multiple processes.
• At its optimum temperature, a catalyst’s effectiveness is at its peak. The biological catalysts’ activity decreases on either side of the optimal temperature.
• The pH of a solution has an impact on biochemical catalysis. A catalyst performs best when the pH is between 5-7.
• In the presence of a coenzyme or activator such as Na+ or Co2+, enzyme activity normally increases. Due to the presence of a weak link between the enzyme and a metal ion, the reaction rate accelerates.

Mechanism of enzyme catalyst:

Enzymes have a lot of cavities on their exterior surface. These cavities have groups like -COOH, -SH, and so on. The active centre of a biological particle is defined as these centres. The substrate, which is charged in the opposite direction as the enzyme, fits into the cavities like a key into a lock. The complex produced decomposes to give the products due to the presence of active groups.

As a result, there are two steps:

Step 1:  The enzyme and the reactant are combined.

E + R ER

Step 2: The complicated molecule is disintegrated to produce the final product.

E R E + R

Conclusion

Enzymes have biological as well as chemical properties. Their sequences and architectures define their function in all living creatures’ genomes and proteomes, and their ability to catalyse chemical reactions expands their biological function to metabolic pathways and networks. Many enzymes are promiscuous, performing many reactions, and their reaction profiles can alter as the protein sequence changes. To capture the core of enzyme chemistry in a functional categorization, bond modifications and reaction centres must be combined with structural information about substrates, products, and processes. The development of tools to navigate across reaction space (e.g., EC-BLAST) has paved the way for a more accurate description of enzyme reactions, allowing for a more comprehensive understanding of biological function.