Final answer:
Enzymes require cofactors and coenzymes to function properly; without them, enzymatic reactions can slow down or stop, potentially leading to a deficiency in essential reaction products in cells.
Step-by-step explanation:
Enzymes are biological catalysts that are crucial for facilitating chemical reactions in living organisms. When these enzymes are missing cofactors or coenzymes, the enzymes become an apoenzyme, which is typically inactive. Cofactors, which can be inorganic ions like zinc (Zn++), magnesium (Mg++), and iron (Fe++), stabilize enzyme conformation and function.
Coenzymes are organic helper molecules, often sourced from vitamins, such as the B vitamins, which are essential for the enzymes to become active holoenzymes and carry out their biological functions. If an enzyme does not have the necessary cofactor or coenzyme, the reaction it catalyzes may proceed more slowly or stop altogether. For instance, vitamin C acts as a coenzyme for enzymes involved in synthesizing collagen, and DNA polymerase requires a bound zinc ion to build DNA molecules.