AP BIOLOGY

Detailed explanation-1: -The energy required to reach the transition state (the activation energy) constitutes a barrier to the progress of the reaction, limiting the rate of the reaction. Enzymes (and other catalysts) act by reducing the activation energy, thereby increasing the rate of reaction.

Detailed explanation-2: -Enzymes are biological catalysts. Catalysts lower the activation energy for reactions. The lower the activation energy for a reaction, the faster the rate. Thus enzymes speed up reactions by lowering activation energy.

Detailed explanation-3: -Whereas as an enzyme effects a reaction’s ‘Kinetics’. That is to say, an enzyme will lower a reaction’s activation energy (EA) but it will not necessarily make a reaction happen spontaneously. The presence of an enzyme will, however, make a spontaneous reaction occur faster.

Detailed explanation-4: -Catalysts make this process more efficient by lowering the activation energy, which is the energy barrier that must be surmounted for a chemical reaction to occur.