Name ___________________________ Date ________

Toothpickase Lab An Introduction to Enzymes

40 points
Introduction
Biologists are very interested in enzymes organic catalysts that control virtually
all of the reactions that occur in living organisms. Enzymes are used in all metabolic
reactions to control the rate of reactions and decrease the amount of activation energy
necessary for the reaction to take place. Enzymes are specific for each reaction and are
reusable. Enzymes have an area called the active site to which a specific substrate will
bond temporarily while the reaction is taking place. The maximum rate at which an
enzyme can catalyze a reaction (in this case the breakdown of a substrate is known as
!max. "n this activity# you will simulate the reaction of an enzyme with its substrate. $ou
will also determine !max.
Materials: (per team of three people
toothpicks %omputer with Graphical Analysis or EXCEL
stopwatch
calculator
Procedure:
"n this activity# the toothpicks represent a substrate and your thumbs and index fingers
represent the enzyme# toothpickase. &hen you break a toothpick# the place where the
toothpick fits between the fingers of both your hand represents the active site of the
enzyme. 'lace the toothpick between the thumb and the first finger of each hand. $ou
must use both hands to break the toothpicks. $ou can only break one toothpick at a time.
PART A: RATE OF ENZYME ACTIVITY
(. )elect (** toothpicks and place them in a shallow bowl.
+. "n your group of three# one person will act as the enzyme toothpickase# the second will
be the timer# and the third person will be the recorder.
,. The enzyme is to break the toothpicks without lookin. $ou may close your eyes or a
blindfold will be provided. -ll of the product (broken toothpicks must remain in the
bowl.
.. The experiment is conducted in +*/second intervals. The timer calls out 0)tart1 and
then marks each +*/second interval. The recorder tallies the cumulati!e number of
toothpicks broken as the timer announces each interval. 2ecord the results in the 3ata
Table below.
""#ou may run out o$ toothpicks be$ore the time trials end%
4. 5raph the number of toothpicks broken as a function of time (+*# .*# 6*# 7*# 8
(** seconds. Be sure to title your graph and to label the x and y/axis. 9se
5raphical -nalysis or E:%E; to make your graph. 2emember to print a copy for
each person. (. points
Data &able<
&ime 'seconds( Number o$ toothpicks broken
+*
.*
6*
7*
(**
(, points
Analysis & Conclusions: Answer in co!lete sentences"
(. =ow many subunits does the toothpickase enzyme have> ((
+. &here is your active site> ((
,. &hat happens to the reaction rate as the supply of toothpicks runs out> ((
.. &hat would happen to the reaction rate if the toothpicks were spread out
so that the 0breaker1 has to reach for them> ((
4. &hat would happen to the reaction rate if more toothpicks (substrate
were added> ((
6. &hat would happen to the reaction rate if there were more 0breakers1
(more enzymes> ((
?. &hat would happen to the reaction rate if the 0breaker1 wears bulky gloves
when picking up toothpicks> ((
7. @or each time interval# calculate the rate of reaction of the toothpickase
using the formula for the slope of the graph.
A+ / A(
T+ T(
A B number of toothpicks broken T B time (seconds
)ecord your data in the table below%
&ime inter!al 'in seconds( )ate o$ )eaction o$ toothpickase
'in toothpicks broken
down*second(
* to +*
+* to .*
.* to 6*
6* to 7*
7* to (**
(, points
C. Based on the table above# what is the !max of toothpickase> ((
PART #: REACTION RATE V$" $%#$TRATE CONCENTRATION
(. 2emove the broken toothpicks from the shallow bowl. 'lace 7* paper clips in the
bowl. The paper clips represent a 0solvent1 in which the toothpicks are 0dissolved1.
Aixing different numbers of toothpicks in with the paper clips simulates different
concentrations.
+. @or the first trial# place (* toothpicks in the bowl with the paper clips. The enzyme
has +* seconds to react (break as many toothpicks as possible. 2emember that the
enzyme is to break the toothpicks without lookin. 2ecord the number broken at a
concentration of (*.
,. 2emove the broken toothpicks and repeat with concentrations of +*# ,*# .*# etc. up to
(**. (i.e.# generate (* data points. 2ecord your data in the table below.
Data &able<
+ubstrate ,oncentration )ate o$ )eaction o$ toothpickase
'in toothpicks broken down*second(
(*
+*
,*
.*
4*
6*
?*
7*
C*
(**
(4 points
.. 5raph the results by plotting )eaction )ate (toothpicks broken in +* seconds vs.
+ubstrate ,oncentration ((*# +*# ,*# .* . . . (**. Be sure to title your graph and to
label the x and y/axis. 9se 5raphical -nalysis or E:%E; to make your graph. 2emember
to print a copy for each person. (. points
Analysis & Conclusions: Answer in co!lete sentences"
(. &hen was the reaction rate the slowest> The fastest> (+
+. Explain the relationship between substrate concentration and reaction rate. ((
PART C: REACTION RATE V$" TEMPERAT%RE
(. )elect (* toothpicks. Time how long it takes to break the (* toothpicks as fast
as you can.
+. 'lace your hands in a bucket of ice water for , minutes.
,. 2epeat step (.
Analysis & Conclusions: Answer in co!lete sentences"
(. %alculate the rate of enzyme action in toothpicks per second for each
temperature. )how all of your work (+
+. %ompare the + rates. Explain what happened and why it happened. (.
&A# Analysis & Conclusions: Answer in co!lete sentences"
Based on your results in parts -# B# and %# discuss the rate of enzyme activity under
various conditions. (+