Enzymes are defined as biological catalysts since they are protein molecules that are produced by living cells. A catalyst is a substance which speeds up a chemical reaction but remains unchanged itself at the end. Enzymes are biological catalysts because they increase the rate of chemical reactions in cells which would otherwise be too slow to sustain life. Several factors affect the rate of enzyme reactions. These include: temperature, pH, enzyme concentration and substrate concentration.
In this experiment the effects of temperature on the enzymes in respiring yeast were being investigated. Firstly, 20 cm3 of yeast suspension was added to the boiling tube, T1. Next, it was stoppered using a rubber bung with a delivery tube attached to it.
…show more content…
The yeast that was used in making this mixture contained enzymes. Due to the presence of the glucose, the enzymes had already started to respire. The enzymes in this respiring yeast would have broken down the glucose into carbon dioxide and ethanol. When stoppering the boiling tubes with the rubber bungs which had delivery tubes attached to them, it was ensured that they were of a sufficiently tight fit in order to make them airtight. This was done to prevent oxygen and other gases in the atmosphere from entering into the boiling tube. Therefore, any bubbling that was seen in the test-tubes would have been due to the carbon dioxide gas only.
The equation for the reaction is as follows:
WORDED EQUATION: enzymes in respiring yeast Glucose Carbon dioxide + Ethanol
CHEMICAL EQUATION: enzymes in respiring yeast C6H12O6 (aq) 2CO2 (g) + 2C2H5OH
…show more content…
The optimum temperature would have been the temperature at which the greatest number of carbon dioxide bubbles were produced. The optimum temperature is the temperature at which an enzyme catalyzes a reaction at a maximum rate. At low temperatures, enzymes are described as inactive and at high temperatures, enzymes are said to be denatured.
In this experiment, it was difficult to determine an exact value for the optimum temperature of the enzymes in the respiring yeast. This problem occurred because two temperature ranges were used. Exact temperatures should have been used instead. This would have given a clearer indication of the temperatures at which the enzymes were inactive, the optimum temperature and the temperatures that resulted in denaturation of the enzymes. Theoretically, the optimum temperature of the enzymes in respiring yeast should be around 30℃ to