Which enzyme converts glucose or fructose to C2H5OH?

Correct option is B

The correct answer is (b) Zymase

Explanation:
• Zymase is a crucial enzyme complex naturally occurring in yeasts.
• It serves as the primary biochemical catalyst for the alcoholic fermentation process, breaking down simple sugars like glucose or fructose entirely into ethanol (C2H5OH) and carbon dioxide (CO2).

Information Booster:
• The overall reaction is strictly anaerobic (takes place without oxygen): $C_6H_{12}O_6 \rightarrow 2C_2H_5OH + 2CO_2$.
• Zymase was famously first isolated from yeast in 1897 by Eduard Buchner, earning him a Nobel Prize for demonstrating cell-free fermentation.

Additional Knowledge:
Invertase (Option a)
• Invertase catalyzes the hydrolysis of sucrose (table sugar) into an equal mixture of its constituent monosaccharides: glucose and fructose.
Maltase (Option c)
• Maltase catalyzes the breakdown of the disaccharide maltose directly into two distinct glucose molecules.
Diastase (Option d)
• Diastase catalyzes the heavy breakdown of complex starches into simpler maltose molecules (commonly found in malted grains).
None of the above/More than one of the above (Option e)
• Incorrect, since Zymase correctly identifies the required fermentation enzyme complex.

So the correct answer is (b)