What effect does Temperature have on the enzyme Catalase?

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What effect does Temperature have on the enzyme Catalase?

Enzymes are proteins and are used in the digestion system to break down food molecules, they are biological catalysts that speed up reactions and contain amino acids. A catalyst is a chemical substance, which speeds up a reaction but does not get used up during it. One enzyme molecule may be used several times over.

 An enzyme has an active site, which has a unique shape into which only a substrate of the exact same unique shape can fit, just as a key fits into a lock.

Temperature is important in all reactions. As the temperature rises, so does the rate of reaction. This is because heat energy causes collisions between the enzyme and the substrate. However enzymes can be denatured at certain conditions. These conditions are high temperatures and extreme levels of pH. The bonds that hold enzymes together are quite weak and are therefore broken by these conditions. When these bonds are broken the enzyme, along with the active site, is broken, thus deactivating the enzyme. This is known as a denatured enzyme.

The factors effecting the speed of the reaction and enzyme are:

  • The concentration of hydrogen peroxide
  • The volume of hydrogen peroxide
  • The temperature
  • The surface area of the potato
  • The pH
  • The type of potato
  • The method of oxygen collected
  • Mass of the potato
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All of the above factors will need to be kept the same apart from the temperature, as this is the factor I am investigating. This will make it a fair test.

Aim: To find the rate of reaction of Catalase in a potato with Hydrogen peroxide when changing the temperature.

Catalase:

Catalase is an enzyme found in every living cell (in animals and plants) and is one of the fastest working enzymes we know about. Catalase is one of the most potent enzymes known and can be found in places such as potato, yeast and tissues in the ...

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