Enzymes

How does CF affect other body systems?  

Cystic Fibrosis sufferers have difficulty at maintaining body mass.

They have high basal metabolic rates. They require 120-140% of the daily intake People with CF may take supplement with enzymes

to help break down the food The breaking down of food and absorption of

nutrients occurs mostly in the small intestine. A wide range of enzymes is produced by exocrine

glands outside the gut and into the membranes of the gut wall.

People with CF have pancreatic ducts blocked with sticky mucus.

The lower concentration of enzymes in the small intestine reduces the rate of digestion. Nutrients can´t be properly absorbed and energy is lost in the faeces.

Hormone insulin produced in the pancreas stops controlling blood sugar levels and canlead to a form of Diabetes

What are they? :

Enzymes are globular proteins that act as biological catalysts.

They have a three-dimensional shape of a protein molecule with a depression on the surface called active site.

Either a single molecule with a complementary shape or more than two molecules that together have a complementary shape can fit in the active site.

When a substrate enters it, the enzyme molecule changes shape to fit more closely around the substrate

Properties of Enzymes:

They are mostly proteins They generally work rapidly They are not destroyed by reactions which they

catalyse. Can be recycled. They are inactivated by high temperatures They are sensitive to pH They are specific for specific reactions

How enzymes probably work:

Enzymes are globular proteins. Their shapes depend on the order of their amino acids.

The Active site provides a platform for reactants or substrates, which have the exact shape.

The enzymes together with the substrates are known as the Enzyme-substrate complex. 

A reaction between the substrates occurs thanks to the enzyme- less energy is required for the reaction.

Synthesis reactions are those, which bring substrates together to produce a complex product.

Degradation reactions are those which break down the active site in to two or more products