Tag: Enzyme kinetics

Phytase activity is a critical metric in animal nutrition, with one phytase unit (FTU) officially defined as the amount of enzyme that liberates 1 micromole of inorganic phosphorus per minute. The formula for phytase activity depends on the specific assay used, but fundamentally quantifies the rate of inorganic phosphate release from a phytate substrate under controlled laboratory conditions.

Over 80% of dietary carbohydrates are ultimately converted to absorbable glucose, a process where the enzyme maltase plays a crucial role. Understanding what inhibits maltase is key to managing carbohydrate metabolism, particularly for controlling blood sugar levels and investigating therapeutic strategies.

According to research from Washington University, human intestinal lactase activity is inhibited by the monosaccharides glucose, galactose, and fructose. This phenomenon is a form of product inhibition and explains how the end products of digestion can slow down the very enzyme responsible for creating them, revealing a direct answer to the question: does glucose inhibit lactase?.

According to the Michaelis-Menten model, the initial velocity of a reaction is linearly dependent on the total enzyme concentration when substrate is not a limiting factor. So, what happens if you double the amount of enzymes in a biochemical reaction? The outcome depends heavily on the availability of the substrate.