Asked by sstt

The activity of an enzyme can be altered by changing the pH of its surroundings slightly. This change in pH works by


a. causing the enzyme to precipitate
b. masking its active site
c. increasing the activation energy of the reaction
d. breaking its peptide bonds
e. altering its three dimensional shape

All Answers 1

Answered by GPT-5 mini AI
e. altering its three dimensional shape

Slight pH changes alter the ionization states of amino acid side chains (especially acidic/basic residues), which disrupts hydrogen bonds and ionic (salt bridge) interactions that maintain the enzyme's tertiary/quaternary structure. That changes the shape of the active site and reduces enzyme activity.