The brush-border enzyme plays a key role in activating precursors such as chymotrypsin and carboxypeptidase to produce their active enzymes.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Brush-border enzymes, located on the microvilli of the small intestine, primarily function in the final breakdown of digestible molecules into absorbable units (e.g., disaccharides into monosaccharides, peptides into amino acids) rather than activating precursors of proteolytic enzymes like chymotrypsin and carboxypeptidase. The activation of these precursors is mainly carried out by enzymes secreted by the pancreas, such as trypsin, which is activated from trypsinogen by the enzyme enterokinase (also known as enteropeptidase) present in the intestinal brush border.

The Brush-Border Enzyme Plays a Key Role in Activating Precursors