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Project Summary
| Difficulty | 7 – 9 |
| Time required | Long (a couple of weeks) |
| Prerequisites | Should have basic knowledge of chemistry and chemical reactions. |
| Material Availability | Readily available |
| Cost | Low ($20 - $50) |
| Safety | Use caution when choosing a biochemical reaction to study. For more information about chemical safety, consult the Chemical Safety Guide |
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Sponsor
| Sponsored by generous grants from Bio-Rad and its Biotechnology Explorer program |
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| Inspiring minds want to know. Unravel the mysteries of biotech |
| explorer.bio-rad.com |
| * Note: This is an abbreviated project idea, without notes to start your background research or a procedure for how to do the experiment. You can identify abbreviated project ideas by the asterisk at the end of the title. If you want a project idea with full instructions, please pick one without an asterisk. |
Abstract
Many proteins act as catalysts which speed up or regulate a biochemical reaction. The kinetics of an enzyme can be investigated by measuring the reactants and products of the reaction over time. Research the enzymatic reaction of a protein and investigate its kinetics. Measure the production of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) by catalase, the digestion of gelatin by papain, or any other enzymatic reaction you have access to. Once you have a method for measuring the kinetics of the reaction, conduct a series of experiments to measure the enzyme kinetics under different conditions. For example, you could systematically change the concentration of dissolved salts, or the temperature, or the pH of the solution in which you are measuring the enzyme kinetics. Or you could add an excess of one or more reactants, or an excess of one or more products to see what effect this would have on the enzyme kinetics.Variations
- For more science project ideas in this area of science, see Biotechnology Project Ideas.
Last edit date: 2008-11-10 13:47:58
Career Focus
If you like this project, you might enjoy exploring careers in Biotechnology.
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Biochemist Growing, aging, digesting—all of these are examples of chemical processes performed by living organisms. Biochemists study how these types of chemical actions happen in cells and tissues, and monitor what effects new substances, like food additives and medicines, have on living organisms. |
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Agricultural Technician As the world's population grows larger, it is important to improve the quality and yield of food crops and animal food sources. Agricultural technicians work in the forefront of this very important research area by helping scientists conduct novel experiments. If you would like to combine technology with the desire to see things grow, then read further to learn more about this exciting career. | |
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Biological Technician What do the sequencing of the human genome, the annual production of millions of units of life-saving vaccines, and the creation of new drought-tolerant rice varieties have in common? They were all accomplished through the hard work of biological technicians. Scientists may come up with the overarching plans, but the day-to-day labor behind biotech advances is often the work of skilled biological technicians. | |||
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