Enzyme

From Distillers Wiki
Jump to navigation Jump to search
Ethanol Fermentation

Any of numerous protein molecules produced by living organisms (including yeast) and functioning as catalysts in biochemical reactions. Despite their derivation from living materials, are not living organisms themselves. Enzymes emerge intact from the catalytic reactions they produce and are denatured (rendered inactive) by pH extremes and high temperatures. Usually, an enzyme acts only on a specific molecule (substrate), so an enzyme that acts upon pectin will not act upon starch. For our purposes, most of the essential enzymes are produced by yeast, but some are not and must be introduced by distiller. Some of the more important enzymes for the purpose of distillation are: