BIOL120 Lab Assignment Spectrophotometry and Activity of α-Amylase - Lab Report-1

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Apr 30, 2024

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Group # 6 BIOL 120 B Name: Jerusha Nelson Date: 02/29/24 Laboratory Assignment Introduction to Spectrophotometry Activity of α -Amylase - Laboratory Report Enzymes are proteins that control all of the chemical reactions that occur within the cells and constitute the largest and most highly specialized class of protein molecules. Enzymes, like all catalysts, speed up reactions without being used up themselves. They do this by lowering the activation energy of a reaction. Enzymes control all of the chemical reactions that occur within the cells. As enzymes are proteins, they can be denatured in a variety of ways, so they are most active under mild conditions. Most enzymes have optimum activity at a neutral pH and at body temperature. One especially important property of enzymes is their specificity. Any one enzyme will only catalyze a single class of chemical reactions. Some enzymes act on one substrate only; other enzymes act on a family of related molecules. Although enzymes participate in the reaction that they catalyze, they emerge unchanged at the end of the reaction and are not used up. Thus, a few enzyme molecules can go a long way. In this lab you will study some basics about the α -amylase [1,4- α -D-Glucan-glucanohydrolase] enzyme activity. α amylase, which is found in saliva and in secretions from the pancreas, hydrolyzes starch to the disaccharide maltose - a reducing sugar made of two chemically bonded glucose molecules. Starch (aka amylose ) per say, is a polymer made of glucose molecules connected Figure 1 together in a long chain via covalent bonds (Figure 1). Many organisms produced it to store energy for later use. To be able to use the energy though, the starch polymer must be broken down into its simpler glucose units by the organisms. In animals, this hydrolysis reaction is catalyzed by the enzyme amylase . As amylase converts starch to glucose dimers (maltose), and trimmers (called maltotriose ); these are then converted by other enzymes to glucose which can then be used for cellular respiration, etc. To measure your α -amylase activity, you will monitor the disappearance of starch which is the amylase’s substrate. The action of α -amylase on starch can be followed with the I 2 KI (potassium iodine). You remember that the I 2 KI reagent stains starch in a purple or rather in a blue- black color. However, it does not stain maltose or maltotriose 1 . When all of the starch has been hydrolyzed, the solution may become yellowish - brown to some clear shades depending on the I 2 KI quantity used in staining. As hydrolysis is taking place and some of the starch has been hydrolyzed but some has not, the resulting solution will show intermediate shades of brownish - gray which can be registered with a spectrophotometer and the entire process is the basis of a spectrophotometric or a colorimetric assay for α -amylase activity. Please note that a positive test result for starch means that the enzyme has not broken down all of the starch molecules in the sample yet and starch is present in the sample(s), while a negative test result for starch means that the enzyme has broken down all of the starch molecules in the sample to maltose and maltotriose sugars. 1 Maltose and maltotriose - the two- and three glucose molecules linked with α -1,4 glycosidic bonds are most commonly produced by α -amylase on starch. Page 2 of 8
You will be quantifying the effectiveness of α -amylase using a spectrophotometer – an equipment which measures the amount of light that passes through a solution at a given wavelength of light. We will set the spectrophotometer at 560 nm that is the light wavelength at which I 2 from I 2 KI, trapped in starch molecules, absorbs the most light, so cut the light transmittance the most as well. Transmittance ( T ) is defined as the fraction of incident light, which is transmitted, i.e., passes through, a sample in the test tube or cuvette. Thus, T = I/I o , where I o is the intensity of light which strikes the sample, and I is the intensity of light after passing through the sample. Transmittance is usually expressed as a percentage : %T = (I/I o ) x 100 Absorbance (A), or optical density (OD), is the quantity of light absorbed by a solution and is a logarithmic function of Transmittance (T) and is expressed as: A = log 10 (1/T) = log 10 (I o /I) and has no units. Thus, 100% transmittance equal 0 absorbance , as A = log 10 (1/T) = log 10 (I o /I) = log 10 1.0 = 0 At 50% transmittance , the absorbance, A = log 10 (1/0.5) = 0.30, and so on. Spectrophotometer has two scales, one calibrated from 0 to 100% Transmittance and the other ranging from to 0 Absorbance . However, the highest calibrated unit of absorbance is 2.0 . As the concentration of a solution increases, the amount of light that is able to get through the solution declines (more light is absorbed by the solution at its higher concentration). Spectral data are usually plotted as absorbance (Y-axis) vs. wavelength or concentration (X-axis). PART 1. Building a standard curve to measure starch concentration. To determine how much starch is digested in the presence of α -amylase, you have to build a standard curve . To build a standard curve , multiple samples with known properties are measured and graphed, which then allows the same properties to be determined for unknown samples by interpolation on the graph. This is done by making solutions of various concentrations of the enzyme substrate or the product of the enzyme reaction . In this case you will make solutions of several starch concentrations. From the absorbance values for each of these solutions, you should be able to build a standard curve . 1. Turn the spectrophotometer on. Wear gloves. 2. Prepare 0.01% starch stock solution by adding 5 mL of the 0.1% starch to 45 mL of the pH 7 buffer in an Erlenmeyer flask. Swirl well the stock solution before using it further! 3. Prepare the solutions in the labeled test tubes as follows: Tube #1 Blank or Negative Control (Label the tube as “B” or “C”): Add 10 mL of the pH 7 buffer to the test tube. Tube #2 0.01% starch : Add 10 mL from the 0.01% starch stock to the test tube. Tube #3 0.008% starch : Add 8 mL from the 0.01% starch stock to 2 mL buffer in the test tube Tube #4 0.006% starch : Add 6 mL from the 0.01% starch stock to 4 mL buffer in the test tube Tube #5 0.004% starch : Add 4 mL from the 0.01% starch stock to 6 mL buffer in the test tube Tube #6 0.002% starc h: Add 2 mL from the 0.01% starch stock to 8 mL buffer in a test tube 4. Dilute the I 2 KI by adding precisely 5 drops of it into 10 mL of water in a test tube labeled " Iodine ". Mix it well by inverting the tube 6-8 times or by using vortex mixer for a few seconds. BIOL-120 Laboratory Assignment Spectrophotometry and Activity of α -Amylase - Laboratory Report
Page 3 of 8 5. When the spectrophotometer has been set up and has been warming up for at least 10 minutes, use a 3 mL disposable Pasteur pipette to add 8 drops of the diluted I 2 KI from the test tube labeled " Iodine " to the “ blank ” test tube #1 containing 10 mL of pH 7 buffer. Mix it well by vertexing or inverting the tube 6-8 times and then transfer 5 mL of the mixture into a slim test tube which you will be using for measuring absorption in the spectrophotometer . This is your “ blank” because this sample does not contain any starch. 6. Place the blank slim test tube into your spectrophotometer sample holder and “zero” the reading by adjusting the meter needle to read 100% transmittance and 0.00 absorbance . Zeroing your spectrophotometer will set "full scale" of the instrument for measurements 2 . 7. Using the 3 mL disposable Pasteur pipette add 8 drops of the diluted I 2 KI (from the test tube labeled " Iodine ") to each prepared sample in test tubes ## 2 through 6. Mix them all well. 8. Wear gloves. Measure the amount of light absorbed by samples in test tubes ## 2 through 6. Do NOT forget to wipe off the outside walls of each tube with paper towel to remove moisture, finger smudges, etc. Start measurements from the lowest concentration of starch (test tube # 6) up to the highest concentration of starch (test tube #2) . Pay attention to detail! 3 Record your values in the Table below. Concentration of Starch Absorbance, A 560 Take 1 Absorbance, A 560 Take 2 Blank (Tube #1, Negative Control) 0 0 0.002 % (Tube #6) 0.18 0.17 0.004 % (Tube # 5) 0.37 0.39 0.006 % (Tube # 4) 0.47 0.45 0.008 % (Tube # 3) 0.55 0.57 0.01 % (Tube # 2) 0.75 0.75 9. Generate Standard Curve on the following page by plotting the absorbance ( A 560) on the Y-axis versus concentration of starch (%) on the X-axis. 2 Taking several measurements at the same wavelength over a brief period of time would not require re-zeroing or re setting "full scale" of your spectrophotometer. However, if readings are taken over an extended period of time your spec may “drift” and the recalibration with the BLANK will be necessary. 3 Attention-to-detail means carrying out the task-in-hand thoroughly and with accuracy. There are two sources of technical errors in measurements: (1) limitations in the sensitivity of the instruments used and (2) imperfections in the techniques used to make the measurement. These errors can be divided into two classes: (a) systematic (e.g., incorrect methods of measurement, or inappropriate use of materials, etc.) and (b) random or accidental errors like inconsistencies of starting and pausing the stopwatch. Plus, also, there are human errors spanning from simple reading/writing mistakes to the operational and subjective errors steaming from investigator’s perceptions of the proceedings.
BIOL-120 Laboratory Assignment Spectrophotometry and Activity of α -Amylase - Laboratory Report Page 4 of 8 Standard Curve for Concentration of Starch vs Absorbance n
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