Question

Why is an enzyme important?

Answer 1

Enzymes are called the bio catalyst. They are the proteins which speed up the rate of the reaction. Enzymes convert the substrate into the desired product. An example of an enzyme is zymase which helps in fermentation in yeast.

Complete answer:
Enzymes are the biological compounds which help in speeding up the reaction. They are made up of proteins and almost all the biological reactions taking place in our body are catalysed by the help of enzymes. The reactant on which the enzyme acts is known as substrate and the desired molecule formed as a result of enzymatic action is known as the product.

The physiological reactions in our body like growth, blood coagulation, breathing, digestion etc all involve the enzymes for getting the desired product.

Let us take an example of the digestive enzymes present in our digestive system. These enzymes help in breaking down the complex food molecules into simpler substances which can be easily absorbed and assimilated by our body. If these enzymes were not there, the breakdown of food would not have been possible. Some of the digestive enzymes present in our body are amylase which helps in breaking down starch to glucose, peptidase- They help in breaking the protein into simpler substances.

The enzymes are industrially also important as they bring about converting the substrate into desired product. For example- enzyme zymase is widely used in the beer industry as it brings about alcoholic fermentation of yeast. It converts the fruit sugars into ethyl alcohol.

Note: Some important characteristics of enzymes are:
- They work at optimum conditions of pH and temperature.
- They are required in very minute quantities.
- They are very specific in nature i.e they are substrate specific.
- The presence of inhibitors can stop the activity of enzymes.