BRAINCAKEEnzymes and Stereospecific Active Sites
Enzymes are proteins that act as biological catalysts. They speed up specific reactions in living cells by providing an alternative pathway with a lower activation energy, and they are not used up.
Each enzyme has an active site: a small region, often a pocket or cleft, formed by the tertiary structure of the protein. The substrate binds to the active site through interactions with the side chains there, such as hydrogen bonds, ionic interactions and van der Waals forces. Bonds in the substrate are then weakened, and the reaction takes place.
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All 15 lessons in Amino Acids, Proteins and DNA · All AQA A-level Chemistry topics