• Question: @Jo What are allosteric enzymes?

    Asked by George to Jo on 10 Mar 2015.
    • Photo: Jo Sadler

      Jo Sadler answered on 10 Mar 2015:

      Hi George
      Allosteric enzymes are enzymes that have a second (ie separate from the site of reaction) binding site. They work by an effector (like a small molecule) binding to the second site (known as the allosteric site) which causes a change in the structure of the enzyme. This change in structure makes the enzyme better ast the reaction it is meant to catalyse and so speeds up the reaction.
      Great question!

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