USES OF ENZYMES

Review of Learning Enzymes are biological catalysts We produce these chemicals, to speed up or slow down biological changes Enzymes are proteins, long chain molecules of amino acids Enzyme catalysts are not changed or used up Each enzyme is substance/substrate specific It fits exactly the substance to be changed Enzymes need the right pH and temperature They are denatured by overheating.

Learning Objectives Enzymes from microorganisms have many uses Proteases and lipases are used in the manufacture of biological detergents Proteases, carbohydrases and isomerase are used in food manufacture

Enzymes in washing powders Enzymes are used in Biological Washing powders to digest food stains- protease and lipase enzymes are found in biological washing powders These washing powders work at lower temperatures so save money

Protease enzymes Protease enzymes to pre digest proteins in baby food Suggest why baby food may need some of the protein food pre digested

Isomerase enzymes These enzymes convert glucose to fructose. Fructose is much sweeter than glucose so less is needed in foods so they are less fattening so often used in slimming foods

Carbohydrases These change starch to sugar syrup for use in foods we use alot of glucose syrup in in food production- look at food labels Starch is cheap as it is made from corn starch so this is a cheap way of producing sweetness

Advantages of using enzymes In industry enzymes can be used to speed up reactions at low temperatures and normal pressures- very useful as many processes would need high temperatures and high pressures to run fast enough without the enzymes

Problems of using enzymes Enzymes are very sensitive to their surroundings The temperatures must be kept down – below 45 degrees centigrade pH must be controlled it costs money to control these things

Micro- organisms make enzymes we can use in their cells which pass out of their cells to be used You have to give the microbes food and oxygen to make the enzyme and remove waste products

Check your Knowledge List 3 enzymes and how they are used in the food industry Explain why biological washing powders are more effective than non biological ones at lower temperatures But they are not more effective at high temperatures

Review of Learning Be able to explain how biological detergents work Describe some ways in which enzymes are used in the food industry