Visual Vocab
Unit 4
Part I

Andrew Shaw5th

Activation Energy

the energy that must be overcome in order for a chemical reaction to occur.

Striking a match. The energy caused by the friction of a match on the matchbox provides the activation energy for the match to ignite.

Allosteric Site

a site on a multi-subunit enzyme that is not the substrate binding site but that when reversibly bound by an effector induces a conformational change in the enzyme, altering its catalytic properties.

Anabolism

set of metabolic pathways that construct molecules from smaller units. These reactions require energy.

Anabolic steroids build up like anabolistic processes build up energy

ATP

is a multifunctional nucleoside triphosphate used in cells as a coenzyme. It is often called the "molecular unit of currency" of intracellular energy transfer. ATP transports chemical energy

Mitochondria help produce ATP

Catabolism

is the set of metabolic pathways that break down molecules into smaller units and release energy

Cellular respiration is an example of catabolism

Catalyst

the catalysis of chemical reactions by specialized proteins known as enzymes

Enzymes are catalysts

Cofactor

A nonprotein component of enzymes is called the cofactor. If the cofactor is organic, then it is called a coenzyme. Coenzymes are relatively small molecules compared to the protein part of the enzyme.

Many of the coenzymes are derived from vitamins.

Competitive Inhibitor

Competitive inhibition is a form of enzyme inhibition where binding of the inhibitor to the active site on the enzyme prevents binding of the substrate and vice versa.

The competitive inhibitor competes with the substrate to bond to the active site like basketball player competing for the ball.

Endergonic

A chemical reaction that consumes energy

The conversion of ADP to ATP is endergonic

Energy Coupling

Transfer of energy from catabolism to anabolism, or transfer of energy from exergonic process to endergonic process.

The Sun reflects its heat in the form of solar energy all over the earths surface. This solar energy is gobbled up by plants in order to prepare their food with the aid of chlorophyll, in a process called photosynthesis. This results in a change in the form of the solar energy to an equivalent chemical form inside the plants.

Exergonic

A chemical reaction that proceeds with the release of free energy

A thermite reaction using Iron(III) Oxide releasing energy as heat

Feedback Inhibition

A cellular control mechanism in which an enzyme that catalyzes the production of a particular substance in the cell is inhibited when that substance has accumulated to a certain level, thereby balancing the amount provided with the amount needed.

Pancreatin is a mixture of several digestive enzymes produced by the exocrine cells of the pancreas. It is composed of amylase, lipase and protease.

The products of these enzymes will reduce the amount of products produced

Induced Fit

The substrate molecule joins the active site of the enzyme to form an enzyme-substrate complex.

The enzymes in the stomach use induced fit to effect the substrate

Metabolism

The process involving a set of chemical reactions that modifies a molecule into another for storage, or for immediate use in another reaction or as a by product.

Metabolism is the set of reactions in an organism that gives them energy. Therefore examples of metabolism include you, your pets, your parents and siblings, the animals at the zoo, the plants in your backyard photosynthesizing, etc

Noncompetitive Inhibitor

a type of enzyme inhibition where the inhibitor reduces the activity of the enzyme.

Since blocking an enzyme's activity can kill a pathogen or correct a metabolic imbalance, many drugs are enzyme inhibitors.

Phosphorylation

addition of a phosphate group to a protein or other organic molecule. Phosphorylation activates or deactivates many protein enzymes.

Smaller punctate staining that appeared to be on the surface of the neurons was more prominent after the washout of blockers and likely indicates phosphorylation

Substrate

a molecule that is acted upon by an enzyme

Sucrose is digested by the enzyme invertase in bacteria and some animals. Sucrose is the substrate