Logged out
Access All our Essays in an Instant
Swap your work for FREE access, or pay £4.99 for instant access
The effect of varying CuSO4 concentration on the breakdown of hydrogen peroxide in the presence of a catalase
Member rating: No Rating | Words: | Submitted: Thu Sep 04 2003
Page Preview
On the left is an image preview of every page of this document, and below are the first 150 words with formatting removed:
THE EFFECT OF VARYING CuSO4 CONCENTRATION ON THE BREAKDOWN OF HYDROGEN PEROXIDE IN THE PRESENCE OF CATALASE Theoretical Background An enzyme is a biological catalyst. A catalyst is a molecule which speeds up a chemical reaction, but remains unchanged itself. An enzyme is a globular protein and as such has a precise 3D shape which incorporates an active site. This is where a specific substrate molecule will bind temporarily by means of Van der Waals forces between the enzymes R-groups and the substrate. A substrate will bind to the active site for a split second; this is the enzyme-substrate complex. This is when the substrate undergoes a chemical reaction and becomes the product. The enzyme is then ready to take in another substrate molecule and the process can repeat itself. Each type of enzyme will usually only act upon one type of substrate molecule. In this case the enzyme CATALASE works only on HYDROGEN...
To see the full version of this document, and 145,841 others
