What Is an Activation Energy in Biology?
Proteins are the worker molecules that carry out myriad tasks in cells. Enzymes are proteins that catalyze reactions that synthesize needed substances, and break down others that are not needed or digest food. Enzymes are catalysts, which means they participate in reactions and make them easier to happen, without being changed by the reaction themselves. One of the ways enzymes do this is by lowering the energy required to start a chemical reaction.
Activation Energy
Activation energy can be thought of as an energy "hill" or barrier that must be crossed before reactants can proceed to form products. It is the minimum energy required to start a chemical reaction.
Reaction Products
The products of a reaction are produced from the reactants with the help of the enzyme. The energy of the products is less than that of the reactants.
Reactants
The reactants [in biochemistry also called the substrate(s)] are used by an enzyme to create the product. The energy of the reactants is greater than that of the products.
The Transition State
The transition state exists when the reactants are brought together and held in a position that facilitates completion of the reaction. It is a physical state in between being purely products or reactants.
Transition State Stabilization
Enzymes lower activation energy by making it more likely for a transition state to exist. They do this by bringing the reactants together in just the right way so that the transition state is stable, increasing the probability that the reaction will proceed all the way to the final products.
Tags: transition state, Activation Energy Biology, chemical reaction, Energy Biology, energy required, energy required start, required start