Skip to content

Peroxidase

Definition

An enzyme that catalyses the transfer of oxygen from hydrogen peroxide to an electron donor, often producing a coloured product. Haemoglobin has pseudoperoxidase activity due to its haem iron centre, and this activity is exploited in presumptive blood tests including luminol, phenolphthalein, and tetramethylbenzidine (TMB).

Related terms

Amino acid
The monomer unit of proteins. All 20 standard amino acids share a central carbon bonded to an amino group, a carboxyl group,...
Haemoglobin
The iron-containing oxygen-transport protein in red blood cells, composed of four polypeptide subunits each with a haem prosthetic group. Its pseudoperoxidase activity...
Isoenzyme (isozyme)
Multiple molecular forms of the same enzyme that differ in amino acid sequence but catalyse the same reaction. In forensic serology, isoenzyme...
Protein denaturation
The loss of a protein's three-dimensional structure without breaking peptide bonds, caused by heat, pH change, UV radiation, or chemical agents such...
Proteolysis
The hydrolytic cleavage of peptide bonds by proteolytic enzymes (proteases). In biological evidence, proteolysis occurs via endogenous cellular proteases released during autolysis...

Explained in

Your journey to becoming a forensic professional starts here.

Practice with mock tests, learn from structured notes, and get your questions answered by a global forensic community, all in one place.