What is the primary action of enzymes in biochemical reactions?

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Enzymes act as biological catalysts by binding a substrate at the active site to form an enzyme-substrate complex. This complex properly orients the substrate and stabilizes the transition state, lowering the activation energy needed for the reaction and speeding it up. After the reaction occurs, the products are released and the enzyme is free to catalyze more substrate molecules. While some enzymes do hydrolyze substrates, that’s just one type of reaction they can catalyze; many enzymes catalyze different types of transformations. Enzymes also aren’t primarily transporters—that role belongs to transport proteins.