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Enzyme: Quick Facts

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AI designs working molecular scissors that recognize and cut selected protein targets • Oct. 16, 2026, 12:40 PM ET (Phys.org)

Photos and Videos

A multi-panel diagram illustrates how a substrate binds to an enzyme's active site through induced fit, leading to product formation, and shows how non-substrates and allosteric regulators can alter enzyme activity by binding to different sites on the enzyme.
A person in a white coat pours rennet from a measuring tube into a large copper vat of milk while stirring, part of the cheese making process.
Diagram illustrating the lock-and-key model of enzyme action, showing a substrate fitting precisely into the enzyme's active site, while non-substrate shapes do not fit. The enzyme is depicted with a complex outline and labeled binding site, emphasizing specificity.
Diagram showing how enzymes catalyze reactions: enzymes bind to substrates, form intermediate complexes, and release products. The lower section details specific mechanisms for acetylcholinesterase, sucrose phosphorylase, and maltose phosphorylase, with labeled steps and components.
Two graphs illustrating enzyme action: the left graph shows a Michaelis-Menten curve with reaction velocity rising and leveling off as substrate concentration increases; the right graph compares cooperative curves, with positive cooperativity showing a steep rise, negative cooperativity a gradual rise, and both labeled accordingly.
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Key People

Emil Fischer.
Emil Fischer
German chemist
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Richard Henderson
British biologist
Maud Leonora Menten
Maud Leonora Menten
Canadian biochemist and organic chemist
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Günter Blobel
German-American scientist
Warshel, Arieh
Arieh Warshel
American-Israeli chemist
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Frances Arnold
American chemical engineer
Levitt, Michael
Michael Levitt
American-British-Israeli chemist
Theorell
Axel Hugo Teodor Theorell
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John Howard Northrop
American biochemist
Martin Karplus
Martin Karplus
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Werner Arber
Swiss microbiologist
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Richard Willstätter
German chemist
Best
Charles H. Best
American physiologist
Euler-Chelpin
Hans von Euler-Chelpin
Swedish biochemist
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Sir Arthur Harden
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Eduard Buchner
German biochemist
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James Batcheller Sumner
American biochemist