5.4

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Mischa

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Proteins are polymers constructed from a set of just 20 kinds of monomers called amino acids.
Proteins are responsible for almost all of the day-to-day functioning of organisms, forming structures such as hair and fur, making up muscles, and providing long-term nutrient storage.
Proteins with less-visible functions include proteins that circulate in the blood and defend the body from harmful microorganisms, and others that act as signals, conveying messages from one cell to another.
Another group of proteins controls the chemical reactions in a cell.
The structure of proteins is the key to understanding their elaborate and diverse functions.
Each amino acid monomer consists of a central carbon atom bonded to four partners: a carbon atom, a hydrogen atom, a carboxyl group, and an amino group, functional groups that you read about in Concept 5.1.
The side group, sometimes called the "R-group," is responsible for the particular chemical properties of each amino acid.
The differences in side groups convey different properties to each amino acid.
Cells create proteins by linking amino acids together into a chain called a polypeptide.
Each link in a polypeptide is created by a dehydration reaction between the amino group of one amino acid and the carboxyl group of the next amino acid in the chain.
Proteins are composed of one or more polypeptide chains.
Your body can make an enormous variety of proteins by arranging different amino acids in different orders, as if you were making thousands of different English words by using different combinations of 26 letters.
The three-letter symbols are abbreviations for the amino acid names.
A protein's shape is also influenced by the surrounding environment, which is usually aqueous.
Heating unfolds proteins because most of the forces that maintain folding are weak attractions between pairs of side groups, and between side groups and water.
A functional protein consists of one or more polypeptides precisely twisted, folded, and coiled into a unique shape.
A protein in the simple form of amino acids linked together cannot function properly.
The sequence of amino acids is important for protein folding, as some side groups form bonds with each other, helping to fold a polypeptide and to keep it folded.
Lysozyme is a protein with 129 amino acids.
The protein alphabet consists of 20 "letters" (amino acids), but the words are much longer.
Water attracts hydrophilic side groups and rejects hydrophobic ones, causing hydrophilic amino acids to orient towards the outside edges of the protein, and hydrophobic amino acids to cluster in the center of the protein.
Most polypeptide chains are at least 100 amino acids in length.
Each protein has a unique sequence of amino acids.
An unfavorable change in temperature, pH, or some other quality of the environment can cause a protein to unravel and lose its normal shape, a process called denaturation of the protein.
There are 20 choices for each amino acid in the chain, leading to a very large number of possible amino acid sequences and therefore, a very large number of possible polypeptides.
The R group is involved in the amino acid's binding to proteins.
The R group is the part of an amino acid's structure that is unique to each amino acid.
The R group is involved in the amino
The R group is part of the amino acid's side chain.
The R group is involved in the amino acid's interaction with other molecules.
The R group is involved in the amino acid's interaction with RNA.
The R group is responsible for the amino acid's biological activity.
The R group is involved in the amino acid's stability.
The R group is involved in the amino acid's degradation.
The R group is involved in the amino acid's interaction with DNA.
The R group is involved in the amino acid's transport.
The R group is involved in the amino acid's interaction with proteins.
The R group is attached to the amino acid's carboxyl group.
The R group is involved in the amino acid's folding.
The R group is located at the end of the amino acid's structure.