This classroom lab allows students to develop skills of the scientific method while exploring the characteristics of enzymes.
Material Type: Activity/Lab, Assessment, Lesson Plan
This activity is a lab investigation in which students design and conduct experiments using pineapple juice containing the enzyme bromelain and its affect on the substrate gelatin found in Jell-O. The focus of student driven investigations are on enzyme specificity, activity and the impact of environmental factors on enzyme functioning. Based on the original activities from School Improvement in Maryland; "Pineapple/Jell-O Lab," Access Excellence Activities Exchange; "Enzyme Labs Using Jell-O" by Anne McDonald and Michael O'Hare, and AP & Regents Biology; "Lab 8: Pineapple Enzymes and Jell-O Molds" by Kim B. Foglia.
Material Type: Activity/Lab, Assessment, Lesson Plan
This resource is a video abstract of a research paper created by Research Square on behalf of its authors. It provides a synopsis that's easy to understand, and can be used to introduce the topics it covers to students, researchers, and the general public. The video's transcript is also provided in full, with a portion provided below for preview: "SIRT3 is an enzyme vital to maintaining a balance between fat buildup and breakdown in the liver. Mice lacking the gene coding for SIRT3 show enhanced fatty liver disease when fed a high-fat diet, but it’s unknown how or whether SIRT3 can actively prevent fatty liver disease in such mice. A recent study examined the molecular effects of a standard diet and a high-fat diet in wild-type mice and in mice missing the gene coding for SIRT3. Feeding SIRT3-less mice a high-fat diet aggravated fatty liver disease and reduced the protective, fat-oxidizing effect of the molecule PPARα. Similarly, levels of LIPIN1, a protective protein that covers for the loss of SIRT3, were reduced when mice were fed a high-fat diet. In the absence of SIRT3, exposure to a fatty diet promoted the production of proteins that absorb fats through the regulatory molecule NRF2..." The rest of the transcript, along with a link to the research itself, is available on the resource itself.
Material Type: Diagram/Illustration, Reading
This resource is a video abstract of a research paper created by Research Square on behalf of its authors. It provides a synopsis that's easy to understand, and can be used to introduce the topics it covers to students, researchers, and the general public. The video's transcript is also provided in full, with a portion provided below for preview: "A team of researchers based at West Virginia University has devised an innovative way to potentially monitor enzyme activity in vivo using electron paramagnetic resonance imaging. The method could provide new insights into the molecular underpinnings of many types of disease. The team specifically focused on tracking enzymatic dephosphorylation. Abnormalities in dephosphorylation have been linked to disorders ranging from cancer to Alzheimer disease. Monitoring such malfunction in vivo can provide crucial details into disease state and progression, but direct measurement of enzyme activity within a living organism remains extremely challenging. Many imaging approaches that might be used for this purpose are hampered by concerns such as low sensitivity and penetration depth. Such limitations prompted the researchers to turn to EPRI – a method with high intrinsic sensitivity and specificity..." The rest of the transcript, along with a link to the research itself, is available on the resource itself.
Material Type: Diagram/Illustration, Reading
This resource is a video abstract of a research paper created by Research Square on behalf of its authors. It provides a synopsis that's easy to understand, and can be used to introduce the topics it covers to students, researchers, and the general public. The video's transcript is also provided in full, with a portion provided below for preview: "In cancer cells, even seemingly small gene expression changes can have a devastating impact, but for some molecules, like the enzyme USP22, researchers don’t know how their expression is regulated. High expression of USP22 is associated with poor prognosis in many human cancers. But the gene for USP22 is rarely mutated, suggesting that the expression changes happen at the transcription step. So, researchers set out to find transcription factors, which are transcription-modulating proteins, that regulate USP22. After identifying several that modulate USP22 expression, they focused on two related factors that increased USP22 expression, AP2α, and AP2β. Overexpressing AP2α/β in cultured non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cells increased the expression of USP22 and the protein it targets, Cyclin D1, while also increasing the cancer cell behaviors proliferation, migration, and invasion..." The rest of the transcript, along with a link to the research itself, is available on the resource itself.
Material Type: Diagram/Illustration, Reading
This resource is a video abstract of a research paper created by Research Square on behalf of its authors. It provides a synopsis that's easy to understand, and can be used to introduce the topics it covers to students, researchers, and the general public. The video's transcript is also provided in full, with a portion provided below for preview: "The pumping action of the heart is tightly regulated by many factors. For example, the ion channel proteins RyR2 and SERCA2a regulate cardiac contraction via the β adrenergic receptor (βAR) pathway and under stress conditions, βAR stimulation promotes the enzyme activity of PKA to ultimately enhance cardiac contraction and relaxation. However, it’s unclear exactly how βAR-stimulated PKA dynamically affects RyR2 and SERCA2a within their nano-scale subcellular domains. To learn more, researchers recently used biosensors to detect PKA activity at these nanodomains in heart cells from mice, rats, and rabbits. They found that the βAR subtype β₁AR signaled to both RyR2 and SERCA2a nanodomains via PKA, while β₂AR did not. Specifically, β₂AR signaling at these nanodomains was prevented by the enzymes PDE3 and PDE4, which controlled baseline PKA activity, but blocking an inhibitory G protein permitted β₂AR signaling at the RyR2 nanodomains..." The rest of the transcript, along with a link to the research itself, is available on the resource itself.
Material Type: Diagram/Illustration, Reading
This resource is a video abstract of a research paper created by Research Square on behalf of its authors. It provides a synopsis that's easy to understand, and can be used to introduce the topics it covers to students, researchers, and the general public. The video's transcript is also provided in full, with a portion provided below for preview: "The enzyme NOS2 produces nitric oxide, a signaling molecule involved in processes like blood pressure regulation, immunity, and stem cell differentiation. NOS2 has three isoforms (NOS2-1, NOS2-2, and NOS2-3), but it’s unclear which one is expressed in differentiating human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs), which are important tools for regenerative medicine and research. To learn more about NOS2 in these essential cells, researchers recently examined public RNA sequencing data for hPSCs. They found that NOS2 mRNA was transiently expressed during differentiation of hPSCs into various cell types, such as heart muscle, cartilage, and pre-placental cells, and the specific isoform expressed, NOS2-2, had a markedly different structure than the common immunity-related isoform NOS2-1. In vitro, four separate hPSC cell lines transiently expressed NOS2 mRNA and protein while they were differentiating into cortical neurons, and further analyses revealed that only the NOS2-2 isoform was expressed in these cells..." The rest of the transcript, along with a link to the research itself, is available on the resource itself.
Material Type: Diagram/Illustration, Reading
This course provides a brief introduction to the field of biocatalysis in the context of process design. Fundamental topics include why and when one may choose to use biological systems for chemical conversion, considerations for using free enzymes versus whole cells, and issues related to design and development of bioconversion processes. Biological and engineering problems are discussed as well as how one may arrive at both biological and engineering solutions.
Material Type: Full Course
In this investigation, students will design experiments and gather data to observe the factors that influence the activity of enzymes.
Material Type: Activity/Lab, Assessment, Lesson Plan
In this seminar students will explore the hacking of glue! You will inquire about the way in which enzymes are a part of chemical reactions in the biological sense through simulations. Experimental investigations will lead to the understanding of the denaturing process of enzymes.StandardsBIO.A.2.2.2 Describe how biological macromolecules form from monomers.BIO.A.2.2.3 Compare and contrast the structure and function of carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, and nucleic acids in organisms.
Material Type: Lesson Plan
This course focuses on the interaction of chemical engineering, biochemistry, and microbiology. Mathematical representations of microbial systems are featured among lecture topics. Kinetics of growth, death, and metabolism are also covered. Continuous fermentation, agitation, mass transfer, and scale-up in fermentation systems, and enzyme technology round out the subject material.
Material Type: Full Course
This resource is a video abstract of a research paper created by Research Square on behalf of its authors. It provides a synopsis that's easy to understand, and can be used to introduce the topics it covers to students, researchers, and the general public. The video's transcript is also provided in full, with a portion provided below for preview: "Designed to treat acute lymphoblastic leukaemia, or ALL, pegaspargase is an important and effective treatment option for both paediatric and adult patients. Pegaspargase is a modified form of the anti-ALL enzyme therapy L -asparaginase, derived mainly from E. coli . Unlike the native enzyme, pegaspargase is conjugated with polyethylene glycol , or pegylated—which offers various advantages, such as providing pegaspargase with a prolonged circulation time, allowing for less frequent administration - every two weeks. And it may reduce immunogenicity compared with native (or non-pegylated) L-asparaginase. Extensive evidence shows that, in adults and children newly diagnosed with ALL, intramuscular or intravenous administration of pegaspargase is an effective first-line treatment as part of a multi-agent chemotherapy regimen. It is also beneficial in patients with relapsed ALL who have hypersensitivity to E. coli L-asparaginase..." The rest of the transcript, along with a link to the research itself, is available on the resource itself.
Material Type: Diagram/Illustration, Reading
This resource is a video abstract of a research paper created by Research Square on behalf of its authors. It provides a synopsis that's easy to understand, and can be used to introduce the topics it covers to students, researchers, and the general public. The video's transcript is also provided in full, with a portion provided below for preview: "Myocardial infarction (MI), or heart attack, can cause long-term damage that leads to heart failure. To treat this type of heart failure, it’s critical to heal the pathological structural changes in the heart and preserve cardiac function. A recent study investigated potential treatment targets by exploring the role of the enzyme ADAM17, whose levels are increased during MI. In a group of 152 patients with MI, high ADAM17 levels were associated with a greater incidence of subsequent heart failure, as well as poorer heart function and higher mortality, suggesting a negative role of ADAM17. In mice with MI, elevated ADAM17 levels were linked to heart damage, but blocking ADAM17 activity limited the cardiac damage and remodeling after MI. Experiments in cultured heart cells revealed that ADAM17 exerted its harmful effects by promoting loss of the cardioprotective enzyme ACE2 and that the activation of ADAM17 depended on modification of a specific site in the protein p38 MAPK..." The rest of the transcript, along with a link to the research itself, is available on the resource itself.
Material Type: Diagram/Illustration, Reading
Students are tasked with designing their own experiment to discover why you cannot add fresh pineapple to Jell-O. After analyzing their results, they will construct a CER that will be used to assess their understanding of the concepts.
Material Type: Activity/Lab, Assessment
In this class, students engage in independent research projects to probe various aspects of the physiology of the bacterium Pseudomonas aeruginosa PA14, an opportunistic pathogen isolated from the lungs of cystic fibrosis patients. Students use molecular genetics to examine survival in stationary phase, antibiotic resistance, phase variation, toxin production, and secondary metabolite production. Projects aim to discover the molecular basis for these processes using both classical and cutting-edge techniques. These include plasmid manipulation, genetic complementation, mutagenesis, PCR, DNA sequencing, enzyme assays, and gene expression studies. Instruction and practice in written and oral communication are also emphasized. WARNING NOTICE The experiments described in these materials are potentially hazardous and require a high level of safety training, special facilities and equipment, and supervision by appropriate individuals. You bear the sole responsibility, liability, and risk for the implementation of such safety procedures and measures. MIT shall have no responsibility, liability, or risk for the content or implementation of any of the material presented. Legal Notice
Material Type: Full Course
Chemical reactions play an important role in our digestive system. This activity will allow you to observe one of those reactions, known as a decomposition reaction. Decomposition is a reaction that breaks down a complex substance into simpler substances. You will be using the enzyme amylase to break down a starch into a simple sugar. This lab will simulate what is happening in your mouth when your saliva (which contains the enzyme amylase) begins to break down the complex carbohydrate starch.
Material Type: Activity/Lab
Students are tasked with designing their own experiment to discover why you cannot add fresh pineapple to Jell-O. After analyzing their results, they will construct a CER that will be used to assess their understanding of the concepts.
Material Type: Activity/Lab, Assessment
This activity contains a concept map on DNA replication and repair. These topics are challenging for most undergraduates; thus, this exercise is designed them to give them practice at distinguishing between the enzymes and processes involved.
Material Type: Activity/Lab
This course applies the concepts of reaction rate, stoichiometry and equilibrium to the analysis of chemical and biological reacting systems, derivation of rate expressions from reaction mechanisms and equilibrium or steady state assumptions, design of chemical and biochemical reactors via synthesis of chemical kinetics, transport phenomena, and mass and energy balances. Topics covered include: chemical/biochemical pathways; enzymatic, pathway, and cell growth kinetics; batch, plug flow and well-stirred reactors for chemical reactions and cultivations of microorganisms and mammalian cells; heterogeneous and enzymatic catalysis; heat and mass transport in reactors, including diffusion to and within catalyst particles and cells or immobilized enzymes.
Material Type: Full Course
This subject deals primarily with kinetic and equilibrium mathematical models of biomolecular interactions, as well as the application of these quantitative analyses to biological problems across a wide range of levels of organization, from individual molecular interactions to populations of cells.
Material Type: Full Course
