How Do Enzymes Work in Living Tissues?
How Do Enzymes Work in Living Tissues?Purpose:  In this lab, you will study the catalase enzyme found in liver cells and observe the effect that changes in temperature and pH can have on the activity of an enzyme.Background Information: What would happen to your cells if they made a poisonous chemical? You might think that they would die. In fact, your cells are always making poisonous chemicals. They do not die because your cells use enzymes to break down those poisonous chemicals into harmless substances. Enzymes are proteins that speed up the rate of reactions that would otherwise happen more slowly. The enzyme is not altered by the reaction. You have hundreds of different enzymes in each of your cells. Each of these enzymes is responsible for one particular reaction that occurs in cells.In this lab, you will study an enzyme that is found in the cells of many living tissues. The name of the enzyme is peroxidase. It speeds up a reaction, which breaks down hydrogen peroxide, a toxic chemical, into two harmless substances – water and oxygen. The reaction is as follows:2H2O2  → 2H2O + O2This reaction is important to cells because hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) is produced as a byproduct of normal cellular reactions. If the cells did not break down the hydrogen peroxide, they would be poisoned and die. Under certain conditions, enzymes are denatured. An enzyme is denatured when the protein molecule loses its proper shape and cannot function. Some things that can denature an enzyme are high temperatures and extremes of pH.
Hypothesis Questions: What will happen to the enzyme in the vinegar?What will happen to the enzyme in at room temperature? In hot water?I think the reaction would be slower.and in room temperature it will more fat and in hot water it would move slower.Materials:Â Â 20 mL liver juice mix, 1 mL vinegar, 4 test tubes, 4 small graduated cylinders, hot plate, 2 beakers, 4 mL hydrogen peroxide, 4 pH strips, thermometer, test tube tongs, test tube rack, iceProcedure:1. Â Add 5mL of liver juice to 4 test tubes marked 1, 2, 3, and 4. 2. Add 1 mL of hydrogen peroxide to 4 small graduated cylinders labeled P1, P2, P3, and P4.3. Record the pH of test tubes 1, 2, and 3. 4. Record the temperature and pH of test tube 1.5. Pour test tube 1 into graduated cylinder P1 and record height of reaction in mL and write down any observations. 6. Place test tube 2 in a beaker of boiling water for 1 min. 7. Record the temperature of test tube 2.8. Pour test tube 2 into graduated cylinder P2 and record height of reaction in mL and write down any observations. 9. Place test tube 3 in a beaker of ice for 3 mins.10. Record the temperature of test tube 3.