cofactor and coenzyme? transketolase and transaldolase?

[scorpioing]

What is the difference between cofactor and coenzyme?

What is the difference between transketolase and transaldolase?

[blcr11]

There isn't any real difference between cofactors and coenzymes. Both are non-protein additions to enzymes that are essential for activity in some way. Maybe there is a tendency to label larger ones as "enzymes" and smaller ones as "cofactors" but almost everyone uses the terms interchangeably. I'm not sure if there is any great difference between transaldolases and transketolases, either. Those names are kind of generic, anyway, and even different transketolases can have different underlying mechanisms--to pick one "class." To be certain, you have to look up the proper name given by the Enzyme Commission. Every enzyme will have an E.C. Number like EC[4.1.5.19]--a number I just now made up so I don't know if such an enzyme exists, but if it does you can look up the enzyme, its proper name, its reaction, and links to other data bases from its entry in the EC tables.