FlinnPREP™ Inquiry Labs for AP® Biology: Peroxidase Enzyme Activity
By: The Flinn Staff
With the Peroxidase Enzyme Activity Inquiry Lab Solution for AP® Biology, students investigate the activity of turnip peroxidase by measuring its rate of reaction with hydrogen peroxide and a natural reducing agent.
Includes access to exclusive FlinnPREP™ digital content to combine the benefits of classroom, laboratory and digital learning. Each blended learning lab solution includes prelab videos about concepts, techniques and procedures, summary videos that relate the experiment to the AP® exam, and standards-based, tested inquiry labs with real sample data. FlinnPREP™ Inquiry Lab Solutions are adaptable to you and how you teach with multiple ways to access and run your AP® labs.
Enzyme activity—how the rate of an enzyme-catalyzed reaction depends on concentration, pH, temperature, metal ions, etc.—provides the central basis for understanding how enzymes function. Among the thousands of different enzymes in a single cell, peroxidases are among the most active and the most widely distributed. Peroxidases protect plants and animals against cell damage by catalyzing the breakdown of hydrogen peroxide, a natural but toxic byproduct of aerobic respiration. In this Flinn Inquiry Lab Kit, students investigate the activity of turnip peroxidase by measuring its rate of reaction with hydrogen peroxide and a natural reducing agent called guaiacol.
The Inquiry Lab Kit begins with a Baseline Activity. Students use a Flinn Spectrophotometer or Vernier SpectroVis Plus to measure the absorbance of the orange product formed from the peroxidasecatalyzed reaction of guaiacol and hydrogen peroxide as a function of time. Graphical analysis gives the rate of the reaction—and the first clue for a model of enzyme action. Using this general procedure, students continue in the Opportunities for Inquiry portion of the lab to design experiments in search of additional evidence that may support or refute the mechanism of enzyme action. What does substrate concentration reveal about enzyme-substrate binding? How does the effect of pH illustrate the essential nature of protein and enzyme structure?
Includes detailed teacher notes, reproducible student handouts and enough materials for eight groups of students to complete the Baseline Activity and additional inquiry activities, including the variable discussed. A blender and spectrophotometer are required and available separately. Fresh turnips are also required.
844-200-1455
AP* Biology Advanced Inquiry Student Laboratory Kits