An experimental protocol that provides an excellent way to discuss concepts at the crossroads of organic chemistry and biochemistry employing biocatalysis is presented. By evaluating several reaction parameters (enzyme source, organic solvent, and acyl donor), it was possible to conduct an enzymatic kinetic resolution experiment using…

An interactive classroom demonstration that enhances students' knowledge of steady-state and Michaelis-Menten enzyme kinetics is described. The instructor uses a free version of professional-quality KinTek Explorer simulation software and student input to construct dynamic versions of three static hallmark images commonly used to introduce enzyme…

A highly instructive, wide-ranging laboratory project in which students study the effects of various parameters on the enzymatic activity of alcohol dehydrogenase has been adapted for the upper-division biochemistry and physical biochemistry laboratory. Our two main goals were to provide enhanced data analysis, featuring nonlinear regression, and…

Abbreviated expressions for enzyme kinetic expressions, such as the Michaelis-Menten (M-M) equations, are based on the premise that enzyme concentrations are low compared with those of the substrate and product. When one does progress experiments, where the solute is consumed during conversion to form a series of products, the idealized conditions…

Several additions to a classroom activity are proposed in which an "enzyme" (the student) converts "substrates" (nut-bolt assemblies) into "products" (separated nuts and bolts) by unscrewing them. (Contains 1 table.)

An experiment using [superscript 1]H NMR spectroscopy to observe the kinetics of the acylase 1-catalyzed hydrolysis of "N"-acetyl-DL-methionine has been developed for the organic laboratory. The L-enantiomer of the reactant is hydrolyzed completely in less than 2 h, and [superscript 1]H NMR spectroscopic data from a single sample can be worked up…

A classroom exercise is described to introduce enzyme kinetics in an undergraduate biochemistry or chemistry course. The exercise is a simulation in which a student acts as an enzyme that "catalyzes" the unscrewing of a nut from a bolt. With other students assisting, the student enzyme carries out reactions with bolt-nut substrates under different…

Trypsin and soybean trypsin inhibitor (Kunitz inhibitor) can be used in a relatively simple and inexpensive student exercise to demonstrate the usefulness of enzyme kinetics. The study of enzyme kinetics is essential to biology because enzymes play such a crucial role in the biochemical pathways of all living organisms. The data from enzyme…