Enzymes that catalyze the transfer of groups between compounds belong to which class?

Enzymes that catalyze the transfer of groups between compounds belong to which class?

• A. Hydrolases
• B. Eyases
• C. Oxidoreductases
• D. Transferases

Answer: (D)

Enzymes are categorized by the type of chemical reaction they catalyze. When an enzyme transfers a functional group from one molecule to another, that activity defines the transferase family. This includes enzymes like kinases, which move phosphate groups, and aminotransferases, which transfer amino groups, among others such as glycosyltransferases that transfer sugar units. The key idea is group transfer between substrates, not merely breaking a bond with water (hydrolases), breaking bonds to form or remove double bonds (lyases), or transferring electrons in redox reactions (oxidoreductases). So, the enzyme class that matches “transfer of groups between compounds” is transferases.

Enzymes are categorized by the type of chemical reaction they catalyze. When an enzyme transfers a functional group from one molecule to another, that activity defines the transferase family. This includes enzymes like kinases, which move phosphate groups, and aminotransferases, which transfer amino groups, among others such as glycosyltransferases that transfer sugar units. The key idea is group transfer between substrates, not merely breaking a bond with water (hydrolases), breaking bonds to form or remove double bonds (lyases), or transferring electrons in redox reactions (oxidoreductases). So, the enzyme class that matches “transfer of groups between compounds” is transferases.