Enzyme-Controlled Reactants
A. ProblemThe purpose of this lab is to observe how enzymes act on substances to produce products. We will observe how enzyme activity is altered when the enzyme environment's pH is changed.
B. Hypothesis
E. ResultsThis experiment consisted of adding lactose to 5 different test tubes that contained a lactase solution in all the possible different levels of pH. All the test tubes had the same levels of pH throughout the experiment; 3, 5, 7, 9, & 11. The variable that changed in the 5 trials was the concentration of lactose. 0.5 g, 1.0 g, 2.0 g, 4.0 g, & 8.0 g (grams) of substrate were added to all the test tubes in 5 different trials. The number of molecules formed per minute was always higher with a neutral pH.
F. ConclusionVirtual Lab, Journal Questions
Conclusion This lab was designed to see if enzyme activity will be affected in various pH levels. Before performing my experiment I made hypothesis that making the pH level of the lactase more acidic, the products formed will be a lot less than the normally produced because the acids will break up the enzyme molecules and slow down the reactant process. The experiment had supported my hypothesis as shown in the graph of Enzyme-Substrate reactions above. The most molecules were formed at a more neutral pH level, and the number of molecules formed per minute began to decrease as the pH level began to rise higher. All enzymes like an optimal pH because the pH level can denature enzyme shape & the active site may be destroyed by not allowing it to bond with the substrate a.k.a lactose to form products. Lactase prefers pH 7 as evidenced by my results that show the highest rate of molecule formation always being at its best ability at a pH level of 7 for every trial using different concentrations of the lactose substrate. I've also come to the conclusion that at the level of 4g of lactose, the active site binds and produces to a certain extent. This explains that after the active site has already binded together, and creates some reactivity, no more molecules are left to be formed or binded together. For future experiments, it would make more sense to test the enzyme activity with all basic pH levels to see the results at a less than to see the results in a neutral environment. |
C. Materials
D. Procedure
Enzyme-Substrate Reaction Product Formation Rate Varying in pH Levels |