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In biochemistry, denaturation is a process in which proteins or nucleic acids lose folded structure present in their native state due to various factors, including application of some external stress or compound, such as a strong acid or base, a concentrated inorganic salt, an organic solvent (e.g., alcohol or chloroform), agitation and radiation, or heat. [3]
Enzymes differ from most other catalysts by being much more specific. Enzyme activity can be affected by other molecules: inhibitors are molecules that decrease enzyme activity, and activators are molecules that increase activity. Many therapeutic drugs and poisons are enzyme inhibitors.
It is hoped that further research into alkaliphilic enzymes will allow scientists to harvest alkaliphiles' enzymes for use in basic conditions. [2] Research aimed at discovering alkaliphile-produced antibiotics showed some success, yet has been held at bay by the fact that some products produced at high pH are unstable and unusable at a ...
Outside the acceptable range of pH, proteins are denatured (i.e. their 3D structure is disrupted), causing enzymes and ion channels (among others) to malfunction. An acid–base imbalance is known as acidemia when the pH is acidic, or alkalemia when the pH is alkaline.
The pH range is commonly given as zero to 14, but a pH value can be less than 0 for very concentrated strong acids or greater than 14 for very concentrated strong bases. [2] The pH scale is traceable to a set of standard solutions whose pH is established by international agreement. [3]
Pepsin is inactive at pH 6.5 and above, however pepsin is not fully denatured or irreversibly inactivated until pH 8.0. [11] [15] Therefore, pepsin in solutions of up to pH 8.0 can be reactivated upon re-acidification. The stability of pepsin at high pH has significant implications on disease attributed to laryngopharyngeal reflux. Pepsin ...
Enzyme catalysis is the increase in the rate of a process by ... metal ions are advantageous in biological catalysis because they are not affected by changes in pH. ...
Acid phosphatase (EC 3.1.3.2, systematic name phosphate-monoester phosphohydrolase (acid optimum)) is an enzyme that frees attached phosphoryl groups from other molecules during digestion. It can be further classified as a phosphomonoesterase .