CHAPTER (1): PROTEIN STRUCTURE AND FUNCTION

Introduction: (For reading only)

Proteins are very important compounds present in the human body such as:

1)

Structural proteins: (that make the structure of cells and tissues)

e.g. proteins that make the cytoskeleton inside the cell.
proteins connecting cells to each other in order to make a tissue, then an
organ.

2)

Functional proteins: (that perform a specific function)

e.g. Carrier proteins:
like hemoglobin carrying O2 to tissues or plasma proteins
carrying important molecules to tissues.
Hormones: Some hormones are protein in nature and control the activity of
many tissues.
Cell membrane receptors:
present in the cell membrane to receive
external signals coming to the cell.
Enzymes: working inside the cell to accelerate important reactions.
Contractile proteins: present in muscles to make muscle contraction.

The chemical structure of a protein:

A protein molecule is a polymer made up of many - amino acids that are linked
together by covalent bonds called peptide bonds.

-Amino Acid: (AA)

- This is the building subunit of a protein.
- General structure:

CHAPTER 1: PROTEIN STRUCTURE AND FUNCTION