Question

Enolase is an enzyme that catalyzes one reaction in glycolysis in all organisms that carry out this process. The amino acid sequence of enolase is similar but not identical in the organisms. Researchers purified enolase from Saccharomyces cerevisiae, a single-celled eukaryotic yeast that grows best at 37°C, and from Chloroflexus aurantiacus, a bacterium that grows best at the much higher temperature of 55 C. The researchers compared the activity of purified enolase from the two organisms by measuring the rate of the reaction in the presence of varying concentrations of substrate and a constant amount of each enzyme at both 37°C and 55°C.


Depending on the organism, the optimal pH for enolase to catalyze its reaction is between 6.5 and 8.0. Describe how a pH below or above this range is likely to affect enolase and its catalytic ability

Answer 1

Answer:

pH below or above the optimal range will result in loss of the enzyme activity.Changing the pH above or below optimum range affect the charges that reside on the amino acid molecules. Amino acids present in the active site of enzymes that attracted each other may no longer continue to be attracted.Again, the shape of the active site of the enzyme will change as a result of which substrate binding will be affected.Overall we can say that the enzymes are denatured.