Investigating the Effect of Copper Sulphate on Amylase Activity

3341 Words7 Pages

Investigating the Effect of Copper Sulphate on Amylase Activity

Aim

The aim of my experiment is to observe the affect on amylase when

adding copper sulphate to a starch solution.

Introduction

Enzymes are that act as catalysts, in other words they increase the

rate of chemical reactions. Consider the following general reaction

between two substances, A and B, which react together to form a

product, substance C:

A + B = C

In biological systems, this reaction might occur very slowly, or not

at all, in the absence of an enzyme. Enzymes will greatly increase the

rate of formation of the product. They can increase the rate of

reactions by a factor of at least one million. Most enzymes are large

protein molecules, with complex three-dimensional shapes.

Enzymes increase the rates of reactions by reducing the free energy of

activation, so that the barrier to a reaction occurring is lower in

the presence of an enzyme. The combination of enzyme and substrate

creates a new energy profile, for the reaction, with a lower free

energy of activation.

Once the products have been formed, they leave the active site of the

enzyme, which is left free to combine with a new substrate molecule.

Enzymes, like chemical catalysts, are not used up in the reaction they

catalyse so they can be used over and over again. The overall reaction

between an enzyme and its substrate can be represented by the

following equation:

ENZYME+SUBSTRATE à ENZYME-SUBSTRATE complex àENZYME + PRODUCTS

Amylase is an enzyme that is found in saliva and pancreatic juice and

aids the digestion of starch and other polysaccharides, which it

breaks down into glucose, maltose and dextrins. It is required to

digest carbohydrates (polysaccharides) into smaller units

(disaccharides), and eventually converting them into even smaller

units (monosaccharides) such as glucose. So Starch being a

carbohydrate, Amylase hydrolyses the Starch.

Inhibitors are substances that reduce the activity of enzymes. They

act by interfering with the activity of the active site, either

More about Investigating the Effect of Copper Sulphate on Amylase Activity

Open Document