Acid-Base Catalysis

by Beth Touchette | April 21, 2010

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Your body relies on enzymes. You might be familiar with the enzymes that
digest your food, like the salivary amylase in your saliva, but enzymes do all
kinds of jobs everywhere in your body. Enzymes are special types of catalysts
made of protein. Catalysts help speed up chemical reactions without being
used up themselves.
Enzymes are not just found in the human body, they are found in all living
things, including yeast. Yeast contains the enzyme catalase (note how the
name of many enzymes ends in “–ase”). Catalase breaks down the chemical
hydrogen peroxide (H202) into oxygen gas and water. It is easy to see if catalase
is working because as it creates oxygen gas, causing bubbles to form.
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Subject
ScienceChemistry

Now, remember that we said that enzymes are made of proteins? Proteins are

important biological compounds. You probably know some foods that are high
in protein, like meat and eggs. Have you ever fried an egg? The protein in the
liquid egg white changes to a solid white mass when heated, because the heat
changes how the protein is put together. This change is permanent. Since
enzymes are proteins, they too can be changed by heating. The addition of
acids and bases can also affect how a protein is put together. In this
investigation, you will treat the catalase enzyme in yeast with acids and bases
and then see how well the enzyme is able to break down hydrogen peroxide
afterwards.
Problem: How do acids and bases affect enzymes?
Materials
5 Clear glass containers of equal size (beakers or test tubes are ideal)
Permanent marker
Tape
5 Clean spoons
Distilled water
Small cup
Baking soda
Set of measuring teaspoons
Measuring cup
Hydrogen peroxide
Dry yeast
Ruler
Lemon juice
Procedure
Label the containers: 1- Control, 2- Low Acid, 3- High Acid, 4- Low Base, and 5-
High Base.
Put a spoon in each of the containers, and make sure to never move a spoon
from one container to the other.
Pour a ½ cup of distilled water in the cup.
Add one teaspoons of baking soda, and stir it to dissolve.
Add two teaspoons of distilled water to container 1- Control.
Stir in ¼ cup of hydrogen peroxide to container 1- Control.
Stir in 1/8 teaspoon of yeast.
Place the ruler alongside the container, and record the highest height the
bubbles reach
Now that you have an idea of what happens when catalase is added to
hydrogen peroxide, predict the height of the bubbles for the other containers
which you will treat with acids and bases. Record your predictions.

Predicted bubble Actual Bubble

Container
height height

1-Control

2- Low Acid

3- High Acid

4-Low Base

5-High Base

Create the acid-treated containers. Add one teaspoon of lemon juice to

container 2- Low Acid and two teaspoons of lemon juice to container 3-vHigh
Acid.
Add one teaspoon of distilled water to container 2- Low Acid so it is the same
volume as container 3.
Stir in ¼ cup of hydrogen peroxide to containers 2 and 3.
Add 1/8 teaspoon yeast to both container 2 and 3. Stir and observe.
Record the maximum height of the yeast bubbles.
Create the base-treated containers. Add one teaspoon of the baking soda
solution to container 4- Low Base and two teaspoons of the baking soda
solution to container 5- High Base.
Add one teaspoon of distilled water to container 4- Low Base so it has the same
volume as container 5.
Stir in ¼ cup of hydrogen peroxide to containers 4 and 5.
Add 1/8 teaspoon yeast to both container 4 and 5. Stir and observe.
Record the maximum height of the yeast bubbles.
Compare your predictions with your actual observations.
Results
The bubble height is likely to be highest is the 1- Control. The bubble height is
likely to be higher in both the Low Acid and Low Base than in the High Acid and
High Base.
Why?
The catalase enzyme works best around pH 7, which is pH neutral. This
indicates that it works best when there is neither excess acid nor base. The
addition of a little acid (lemon juice) changes the catalase protein a little,
causing it not to work quite as well, whereas the addition of more acid changes
the catalase protein more, further reducing its ability to create oxygen bubbles.
The addition of a little base (baking soda) changes the catalase protein a bit,
causing it not to work quite as well, whereas the addition of double the amount
of baking soda further damages the catalase protein.
Going Further
If you want a more accurate picture of what the acid and base are doing in the
reaction, use some pH paper to see how the pH is changed. Also, not all
enzymes work best at neutral pH. The enzyme lactase evolved to work in the
digestive system, where pH’s are not neutral. Do an experiment to determine at
what pH level lactase works best.
Author: Beth Touchette