Current Agriculture: Enzymes

Enzymes are large biological molecules that are responsible for the thousands of chemical interconversion that sustains life. They are extremely selective catalysts, greatly accelerating the rate and specificity of metabolic reactions, from the digestion of food to the synthesis of DNA. Most enzymes are proteins, although some catalytic RNA molecules have been identified. Enzymes adopt a specific three-dimensional structure, and may employ organic and inorganic cofactors to assist in catalysis.

Properties of Enzymes
Metabolic reactions within a cell occur through the catalytic actions of enzymes. A catalyst is any substance that increases or enhances the rate of reaction without itself being converted prior to or after the reaction. However, it cannot accelerate the reaction without being completely involved in the reaction. The catalyst binds to the reactants (called the substrate), accelerates the reaction, and then repeatedly separates from the reaction products, the process of acceleration continuously in a specific reaction. Therefore, enzymes can only increase a specific biochemical reaction involving specific substances to which they can bind.

Composition of Enzymes
All enzymes are proteins, in terms of their nature. Not all proteins are enzymes. However, proteins that act like catalysts in chemical reactions are refer to as enzymes. Their functionality is determined by their structure, which is a combination of the sequence of amino acids. The sequence results in a certain three-dimensional structure that may be stabilized by moyeties other than amino acids that are added to the protein backbone.

Enzymes Mechanisms

Providing an alternative pathway.
Decreasing the reaction entropy change by bringing substrates together in the correct orientation to react.
Increases in temperatures, and speed up reactions. Thus, temperature increases help the enzyme function and develop the end product even faster.
Bringing down the activation energy by creating an environment in which the transition state is stabilized.
Bringing down the energy of the transition state, but without altering the substrate, by creating an environment with the opposite charge distribution to that of the transition state.

Enzymes inhibitors

Enzyme inhibitors, these are molecules that interact in some way with the enzyme to obstruct it from working in the normal manner. Below are a variety of types of inhibitors which including;