Figure 1-7. How a protein molecule acts as catalyst for a chemical reaction.

Figure 1-7How a protein molecule acts as catalyst for a chemical reaction

(A) In a protein molecule the polymer chain folds up to into a specific shape defined by its amino acid sequence. A groove in the surface of this particular folded molecule, the enzyme lysozyme, forms a catalytic site. (B) A polysaccharide molecule (red)—a polymer chain of sugar monomers—binds to the catalytic site of lysozyme and is broken apart, as a result of a covalent bond-breaking reaction catalyzed by the amino acids lining the groove.

From: The Universal Features of Cells on Earth

Cover of Molecular Biology of the Cell
Molecular Biology of the Cell. 4th edition.
Alberts B, Johnson A, Lewis J, et al.
New York: Garland Science; 2002.
Copyright © 2002, Bruce Alberts, Alexander Johnson, Julian Lewis, Martin Raff, Keith Roberts, and Peter Walter; Copyright © 1983, 1989, 1994, Bruce Alberts, Dennis Bray, Julian Lewis, Martin Raff, Keith Roberts, and James D. Watson .

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