Lab10_EnzymesProcedureOBJECTIVES1.To demonstrate enzyme activity and understand how an enzyme works2.To demonstrate how presence of starch is detected in food3.To demonstrate the activity of amylase, the enzyme present in saliva responsible for digestion of starch4.To observe the effect of pH on enzyme activityBACKGROUND:Please review course materials about proteins and carbohydrates. You may also find it helpful to review yourresults from Experiment 10: Denaturation of Proteins.Recall thatenzymesareproteincatalysts responsible for allowing metabolic reactions to occur at moderate bodytemperatures. In this experiment, we will study the action ofamylase, the enzyme present in saliva that digestsstarch into smaller glucose units.Starchis a type ofcarbohydrate,a class of chemicals that we find in food.Morespecifically, it is a polysaccharide made of a chain of many (between 100 and 6000) glucose units linked together. Itis the main energy storage molecule of plants. Animals use a similar molecule, glycogen, as a short-term energystorage molecule.Glycogenis also a polymer of glucose but differs from starch in that it is more highly branched.When we digest starch, the long chains of glucose units are broken down to the simple carbohydrate, glucose,which can be used by the body for energy.Presence of starch in food can be detected by its reaction with iodine. Starch molecules form helices (windingchains) where polyiodide chains are trapped and give a dark blue or purple color. When the dark blue or purple
