Invertase is an enzyme that hydrolyses sucrose into glucose and fructose. Its name reflects the change in optical rotation of the sugar mixture during the reaction. Optical rotation therefore provides a measurable signal of chemical conversion, provided other contributions to that signal are controlled. [ref]
The Kinetics of Invertase Action by L. Michaelis and Maud L. Menten. 1913, translated pp. 1–3: substrate, acidity, temperature and optical-rotation measurements
The classic kinetic study measured initial reaction rates at different sucrose concentrations. At low substrate concentration the rate rises strongly as more substrate is supplied; at high concentration the finite amount of enzyme limits the rate. This supplies a concrete motivation for Michaelis-Menten kinetics. Product mutarotation complicates the optical readout, showing why a convenient physical signal is not automatically a direct count of reaction events.
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