Structure And Function Discovery Of Proteins

Proteins are complex structures made up of chains of amino acids. Each protein has a different function such as enzymes to catalyze reactions or protein hormones to trigger certain functions of a cell. First let’s start with the most basic component of a protein: an amino acid. An amino acid is made up of a central carbon atom attached to a hydrogen atom, a carboxyl group, an amino group, and an R group which varies

The functional groups are called aminos and carboxyls. The linkage type is by using a peptide bond. The primary function of protein is build and repairs the body.

Thiol groups are important to protein folding and forming disulphide bonds that are essential to protein structure. Determining the number of thiol groups in a protein is important in determining the tertiary structure of the protein. The ovalbumin is the experiment was purified from egg white using centrifugation and ammonium sulphate precipitation and then the thiol groups identified using DTNB and spectroscopy. The ovalbumin was found to have one thiol group; from this we were also to infer that DNTB alkylates thiolgroups; whereas SDS keeps proteins denatured.

(a) Describe THREE types of chemical bonds/interactions found in proteins. For each type, describe its role in determining protein structure.

3. Explain why the structure of a protein is important to how the protein functions. It’s important because it can make many complex shape and each shapes can have different functions.

A protein has multiple existing structures, these are the primary, secondary, tertiary and quaternary structures which occur progressively. A protein is essentially a sequence of amino acids which are bonded adjacently, and interact with one another in various ways depending on the R group that the amino acid contains. There are 20 different amino acids which are able to be arranged in any given order, thus giving rise to a potential 2.433x1018 (4.s.f) different combinations, and therefore interactions between the various amino acids.

The amino acids bond together in bonds called peptide bonds. A chain of amino acids is called a polypeptide chain. The structure in which the amino acids are bonded determines the function of the protein. There are about twenty different amino acids, but there is a wide variety of possible combinations that amino acids can bond, therefore proteins have quite a lot of functions. Some things proteins are used for are the building of the muscles, tendons, organs, glands, nails, and hair. There are many more different functions for proteins. To detect proteins in test materials, there is an identifying agent called Biuret Solution which when mixed with the test material. It turns purple if it contains a protein. The darker the violet color, the more concentrated it is with protein.

their normal shape to an abnormal shape, however, the chemical composition of the protein remains

They are made up of amino acids (consists of amino group, carboxyl group, hydrogen atom, and R group). Polypeptide bonds form between amino acids to form polypeptide chains. Amino acid sequence is primary protein structure. The secondary structure is the bonding pattern of the amino acids (e.g. helix, sheet, etc.). The tertiary structure consists of the domain, where the sheets or helixes fold on each other and become stable. The quaternary structure consists of several polypeptide chains that form advanced proteins such as human leukocyte

Proteins are polymeric chains that are built from monomers called amino acids. All structural and functional properties of proteins derive from the chemical properties of the polypeptide chain. There are four levels of protein structural organization: primary, secondary, tertiary, and quaternary. Primary structure is defined as the linear sequence of amino acids in a polypeptide chain. The secondary structure refers to certain regular geometric figures of the chain. Tertiary structure results from long-range contacts within the chain. The quaternary structure is the organization of protein subunits, or two or more independent polypeptide chains.

Proteins are the basis of the protoplasm (fluid living content of the cell that contains the cytoplasm and cell nucleus) and are found in all living organisms. Proteins make up the bulk of animals body’s non-skeletal structure. As enzymes, they catalyze biochemical reactions; as antibodies, they prevent the effects of invading organisms; and as hormones, they control metabolic processes (C. Bissonnette, 2011). The Biuret test was used to detect the presence of peptide bonds within proteins, and they were found present in test tube #9 (control for peptide bonds).

For the second part of the experiment, one had to use the knowledge learn from viewing protein molecules in FirstGlance in Jmol to analyze the protein PDB ID: 4EEY. The analysis of this protein was done using the RSCB protein data bank (PDB) at (http://www.rcsb.org/pdb/home/home.do).2

Each gene acts as a code, or set of instructions, for making a particular protein. They tell the cell what to do, give its characteristics, and determine the way its body works. Each protein has a unique sequence of amino acids. This means that the number and order of amino acids is different for each type of protein. The proteins fold into different shapes. The different shapes and sequences give the proteins different functions, e.g. keratin are a fibrous protein found in hair and nails. If the gene has even the slightest of disorder within its sequence it could lead to an inaccurate order of amino acids

Proteins are made up of long chains of building blocks called amino acids. The sequence of the amino acid is characteristic to a particular protein and this determines its function. There are twenty or more amino acids - some of which are essential some non-essential.

In most instances, protein molecules are usually embedded from hundreds to thousands of amino acids. A repertoire of twenty different amino acids, joined in any possible sequence allows the existence of an inconceivably large number of proteins that is infinite in nature.