Protein Metabolism Flashcards
how is nitrogen incorporated in the body
nitrogen is only used as the bases of making nucleotides –> that can then make different amino acids
what is the term called when nitrogen is turned into biological molecules
assimilation
what is the amino acid that can break down molecules (or build) with nitrogen in the structure
glutamate
what is the bacteria that can break down nitrogen easily
cyanobacteria
what enzyme is used for nitrogen fixing
nitrogenase
explain how nitrogenase works
needs to live anaerobically so then uncoupling of the mitochondria can increase electron flow and burns off O2 in the cell
what is the name of the “cell wall” that cyanobacterial make to prevent O2 from coming into the cell
heterocysts
what is the process called that turns ammonium into nitrite
nitrification
glutamine and aspartate is what kind of amino acid
excitatory neurotransmitter
what is the temporary storage of nitrogen called
L-Glutamine
what is PLP
pyridoxal phosphate
what is PLP made from
vitamin B6
what reaction is PLP involved in
Transamination
what happens to the amino acid involved in Transamination
it turns into a alpha-keto acid
what 2 main molecules are needed to make glutamate
alpha-ketoglutarate and L-amino acid
what coenzyme is needed for aminotransferase
PLP (pyridoxal phosphate)
what is present in plasma that can indicate cell damage
aminotransferase
what are the 6 intermediate compounds
acetyl-CoA, pyruvate, alpha-ketoglutarate, succinyl-CoA, fumarate and oxaloacetate
what does it mean if the molecule is glucogenic
they have a relatively direct link to oxaloacetate intermediate, which can then form glucose
why are some molecules termed as ketogenic
the molecules’ carbon skeletons turns into acetyl-CoA (or smt like it) and if there is a high abundance of acetyl-CoA, it can be then turned into ketone bodies
why are ketone bodies important in starvation states
if there is a lot of breakdown of proteins, there is not enough sugars to keep CNS alive, so ketone bodies is used as a subsitution for glucose
what cycle can hyperammonaemia happen in
urea cycle
what happens in PKU
phenylalanine converts to phenylpyruvate instead of tyrosine, causing hypopigmentation
