Question

Amylase becomes denatured at a temperature of 80°C. During an experiment to study the effect of varying temperature on enzyme activity, amylase's reactivity with starch was measured at body temperature (37°C), and then again at an increased temperature of 42°C. How would this increase in temperature affect the experiment

Answer 1

Answer;

The rate of reaction will increase

Explanation;

• Enzymes are biochemical catalysts that are protein in nature and they catalyze various metabolic reactions.
• Enzymes are sensitive to temperature and pH. Enzymes work best at specific temperature and pH called optimum temperature and optimum pH.
• The rate of reaction increases as the temperature increases, up to optimum temperature where the rate of reaction will be maximum. A temperature higher than optimum temperature would denature the enzyme, and on the other hand low temperatures inactivates the enzymes, thus the reaction can not take place.

Answer 2

The increase in temperature affects the experiment in such a way that amylase does not efficiently break down starch than it was in normal body temperature (37°C). This is because the structure of amylase will change, thus it cannot interact well with starch than its original structure at 37°C.