Enzyme Investigation. How does the concentration of hydrogen peroxide affect the amount of oxygen produced by the enzyme catalase?
Claudia Cheng
Enzyme Investigation
Introduction
An enzyme is a biological catalyst that alters the rate of a reaction without being changed itself. Enzymes are three dimensional shape proteins that has a very specific active site. “In enzymatic reactions, substrates are converted into different molecules also known as products. Since enzymes are very selective for their substrates, each enzyme can only convert one kind of substrate into one kind of product molecule.
Research Question
How does the concentration of hydrogen peroxide affect the amount of oxygen produced by the enzyme catalase?
Hypothesis
If catalase is added to the varying levels of dilution of hydrogen peroxide samples, the solution with the highest substrate concentration will yield the most activity, thus producing more oxygen gas. This assumption is based on scientific theory, which states that higher substrate concentrations increase the ability of enzymes to catalyze reactions. As substrate concentration increases, the amount of substrate per unit volume increases. So it is more likely than an en enzyme molecule collides with a substrate molecule, as more successful collisions are more likely to occur. This means enzyme activity increases and the rate of reaction also increases.
