Final answer:
Enzymes affect chemical reactions by lowering activation energy, increasing reaction rates, and maintaining the free energy of reactants and products. They bring reactants into proper orientation and may participate in the reactions but remain unchanged after the reaction.
Step-by-step explanation:
To what extent do enzymes affect the energy of the reaction in reactants, activation point, and products? Enzymes play a crucial role in the biochemistry of cells by affecting these aspects of chemical reactions. They lower the activation energy required for reactions, thus increasing the rate at which they occur without altering the free energy of reactants or products. By binding reactants, or substrates, at an enzyme's active site, enzymes stabilize the transition state and decrease the amount of energy needed for bonds to break and new bonds to form.
Enzymatic activity includes bringing substrates together in the right orientation, contorting substrate molecules to facilitate bond-breaking, and sometimes participating in the reaction itself by forming temporary covalent bonds with the substrates. Importantly, enzymes are not consumed in the reaction; they are available to catalyze subsequent reactions after releasing their product(s).
Environmental factors like pH, temperature, and salt concentration can partly control enzyme activity in cellular environments, ensuring that metabolic processes proceed at rates suitable for cell survival and function.