What must the active site of an enzyme accomplish?
The active site of an enzyme contains the catalytic and binding sites. The structure and chemical properties of the active site allow the recognition and binding of the substrate. The active site is usually a big pocket at the surface of the enzyme that contains residues responsible for the substrate specificity (charge, hydrophobicity, steric hindrance) and catalytic residues which often act as proton donors or acceptors or are responsible for binding a cofactor such as PLP, TPP or NAD. The active site is also the site of inhibition of enzymes.
