MCAT Biochemistry Review | Latest
Version | 2024/2025 | Graded A+
What is the primary function of the enzyme catalase in cells?
Catalase breaks down hydrogen peroxide into water and oxygen, protecting cells from
oxidative damage.
Explain the role of coenzymes in enzyme-catalyzed reaction...
MCAT Biochemistry Review | Latest
Version | 2024/2025 | Graded A+
What is the primary function of the enzyme catalase in cells?
✔✔Catalase breaks down hydrogen peroxide into water and oxygen, protecting cells from
oxidative damage.
Explain the role of coenzymes in enzyme-catalyzed reactions.
✔✔Coenzymes are organic molecules that assist enzymes by providing essential chemical
groups or by stabilizing transition states during catalysis.
What is the significance of the Km value in enzyme kinetics?
✔✔The Km value indicates the substrate concentration at which an enzyme reaches half its
maximum reaction rate, reflecting the enzyme’s affinity for its substrate.
Describe the function of the citric acid cycle in metabolism.
1
,✔✔The citric acid cycle generates high-energy electron carriers (NADH and FADH2) and
produces ATP, playing a central role in aerobic respiration.
How do competitive inhibitors affect enzyme activity?
✔✔Competitive inhibitors bind to the active site of an enzyme, competing with the substrate and
increasing the Km without affecting the Vmax.
What is the role of ATP in cellular energy transfer?
✔✔ATP acts as a primary energy carrier, transferring energy by donating a phosphate group to
other molecules, which drives various cellular processes.
Explain the difference between primary, secondary, tertiary, and quaternary protein structures.
✔✔Primary structure refers to the amino acid sequence, secondary structure involves local
folding patterns like α-helices and β-sheets, tertiary structure is the overall 3D shape of a single
polypeptide, and quaternary structure is the arrangement of multiple polypeptide subunits.
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,What is the function of the enzyme DNA polymerase during DNA replication?
✔✔DNA polymerase synthesizes new DNA strands by adding nucleotides complementary to the
template strand, ensuring accurate replication of the genetic material.
Describe the role of the endoplasmic reticulum in protein synthesis and processing.
✔✔The rough endoplasmic reticulum is involved in synthesizing and folding proteins, while the
smooth endoplasmic reticulum is responsible for lipid synthesis and detoxification.
What is the significance of the hydrophobic effect in protein folding?
✔✔The hydrophobic effect drives nonpolar amino acids to cluster away from the aqueous
environment, stabilizing protein structure by promoting the formation of the protein’s core.
What is the role of ubiquitin in protein degradation?
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, ✔✔Ubiquitin tags proteins for degradation by the proteasome, marking them for breakdown and
recycling within the cell.
Describe the function of the enzyme hexokinase in glycolysis.
✔✔Hexokinase phosphorylates glucose to form glucose-6-phosphate, trapping glucose inside the
cell and facilitating its further metabolism.
How does the enzyme ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (RuBisCO) function in
photosynthesis?
✔✔RuBisCO catalyzes the fixation of carbon dioxide to ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate, initiating the
Calvin cycle for carbon fixation in photosynthesis.
What is the role of chaperone proteins in cellular processes?
✔✔Chaperone proteins assist in the correct folding of other proteins, prevent misfolding, and
help in refolding denatured proteins.
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