THE 3-D STRUCTURE OF LYSOZYME

The drawing below shows the three-dimensional representation of the structure of a

molecule of lysozyme, an enzyme found in saliva and tears, as well as in some other
human body fluids. Lysozyme helps in the breakdown of bacterial cells.














QUESTIONS
1. To what class of chemical compounds does lysozyme belong? (1)
The chemical compounds which Lysozyme belongs to is to proteins.
What are the sub-units (monomers) of which enzymes such as lysozyme, and
other proteins are composed? (1)
The sub-units of which enzymes such as lysozyme and other proteins are
composed are called amino acids.
2. Explain the significance and role of the region labelled 'Active site cleft'. (4)
The Active Site cleft is the part of the enzyme that has a direct connection to the
substrate and carries out the reaction. It can either be a degradation or a
synthesis reaction
3. Why do you think lysozyme is found in saliva and tears? (3)
Lysozyme is found in saliva so that digestion and breaking down of food can start
happening as soon as you put food into your mouth (It speeds up reactions).
Lysozyme is also found in tears because it eliminates bacteria from the eyes and
helps to remove any type of infection.
4. ANALYSIS AND REASONING QUESTION: When the yellow bacterium Micrococcus
luteus comes into contact with lysozyme, the bacterial cell wall is broken open
and loses its yellow colour. Explain how this property could enable you to find
out which of saliva or tears contains the higher concentration of lysozyme. (5)
A greater concentration of Lysozyme would mean more bacterial cell walls are
broken open and lose their yellow colour. Therefore the substance with the
lysozyme would stay with that colour, this means that saliva has a higher
concentration of lysozyme because it is slightly more coloured than tears.
5. Explain why enzymes can be effective in very small amounts. (2)
Enzymes can be effective in very small amounts because they are not destroyed by
the reaction which they catalyse and therefore can be recycled to speed up many
different reactions and join up with many different substrates.
TOTAL 16

Alicia Snchez