How do enzymes affect chemical reaction?
Enzymes are shaped proteins, normally produced by organisms to catalyse chemical reactions. They function in a similar way to chemical catalysts, by lowering (or occasionally raising) the ‘activation energy’ for a specific reaction, and are not used as a reactant. oweing to the nature of enzymes, as proteins, they function optimally at a set temperature and pH, as their presence outside these conditions is often to the detriment of the protein structure, or instead, in the case of low temperatures, slows the reaction and frequently fails to meet the activation energy. Enzymes will usually speed up a chemical reaction, and will additionally facilitate it when it would otherwise not occur.
