Enzymology

Enzymology is the branch of biochemistry that studies enzymes, including their structures, catalytic mechanisms, kinetics, regulation, and biological roles.

Enzyme catalysis: The acceleration of chemical reactions by enzymes through pathways with lower activation barriers. This is the central process enzymology investigates at the molecular level.
Enzyme: A biological catalyst, usually a protein, that accelerates a chemical reaction without being consumed. Enzymology takes enzymes as its primary objects of study.
Drug discovery: The process of identifying and developing compounds that can prevent, treat, or diagnose disease. Enzyme assays and inhibitor studies help identify and refine drug candidates.
Eduard Buchner: A German chemist whose cell-free fermentation experiments demonstrated that fermentation can occur without living yeast cells. His experiments helped establish enzymology as a study of chemical activity outside intact cells.
Ribozyme: An RNA molecule capable of catalyzing a chemical reaction. Ribozymes challenge the assumption that biological catalysts are always proteins.
Michaelis–Menten kinetics: A model relating reaction rate to substrate concentration for a simple enzyme-catalyzed reaction. It provides a foundational quantitative description of enzyme activity.
Protein structure: The three-dimensional arrangement of atoms in a protein, shaped by its amino acid sequence and environment. An enzyme’s structure determines the geometry and chemistry of its catalytic sites.
Enzyme assay: An experimental procedure that measures enzyme activity or related properties. Assays turn enzymatic reactions into quantitative evidence about function.
Frederick Gowland Hopkins: A British biochemist whose research helped establish biochemistry as a distinct discipline. His work helped build the scientific setting in which enzyme research developed.
Abzyme: An antibody selected or designed to catalyze a chemical reaction. Abzymes provide a contrast between naturally evolved enzymes and catalysis by antibodies.

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Carl Ferdinand CoriNarrower topic: Cori’s experiments helped make enzyme activity central to explaining metabolic pathways.