Q. 16.69 - An Introduction to General, Organic, and Biological Chemistry

Question

How do enzymes differ from catalysts used in chemical laboratories? $(16.4)$

Step-by-Step Solution

Answer

Enzymes differ from regular chemical catalysts in several important ways. 

• Enzymes are very specific due to their unique active site and each enzyme has several amino acid residues that function to catalyze the process with the substrate to form a product.
• Chemical catalysts can react with a variety of substrates.

Step 1: Introduction Enzymes differ from regular chemical catalysts in several important ways.

• Enzymes are very specific due to their unique active site and each enzyme has several amino acid residues that function to catalyze the process with the substrate to form a product.
• Chemical catalysts can react with a variety of substrates. 

Step 2: Explanation Differences between enzymes and catalysts used in chemical laboratories

Major differences between enzymes and catalysts are