Page 149 - The Miraculous Machine that Works for an Entire Lifetime: Enzyme

Adnan Oktar

macrophages, which are able to ingest bacteria and other foreign mate-

rials they encounter within the body by way of phagocytosis. (For more
on phagocytosis, see Harun Yahya, The Miracle of the Immune System,
[New Delhi: Goodword Books, 2001].)
Lysosomal enzymes are highly efficient at breaking down sub-
stances. Inside the lysosome, however, they are in an inactive state. If
the lysosome membrane is pierced or torn, the enzymes begin destroy-
ing the cell they are in, a process known as autolysis. This destruction

generally takes place on old or damaged organelles or ones that are no
longer functioning. The lysosome inside every cell performs this
process through the enzymes it releases, eliminates dead organelles,
and sometimes completely destroys the cell itself.
For example, a large number of bacteria enter your body along
with the food you eat. The duty of destroying these while they are still
in the mouth lies with the lysosomal enzymes. At the same time, these
enzymes ingest and clear up food wastes remaining in the mouth, thus
eliminating the food that can support bacteria. In this way, bacteria are

Sugar
Active site Active site

A B C

The breaking down of the bacterial cell membrane by the active site of the lysosomal
enzyme
A shows the tertiary structure of the lysosomal enzyme. B and C designate the active
site in the protein. The sugar substrate binds to the active site together with the bac-
terial cell membrane. Lysosomal enzymes break the bonds between the two sugar
molecules, letting the bacterial cell membrane to be torn apart. Thus the bacterium
dies.

147