Proteins Flashcards
They are very important molecules in our cells and are essential for all living organisms.
Proteins
They are the most abundant molecules of the living system.
Proteins
Proteins make up about what percentage of our body mass?
15%
True or False: Proteins are utilized in building of new tissues, but not in maintaining tissues that are already developed.
FALSE. Proteins are also used in the maintenance of already developed tissues.
The Dutch chemist who first described proteins.
Gerardus Johannes Mulder
Swedish chemist who named proteins
Jons Jacon Berzelius
He believed that proteins were the most important nutrient for maintaining the body.
Carl von Voit
He believed “flesh makes flesh”
Carl von Voit
When were proteins first described and named?
1838
He showed that urease was a protein.
James B. Sumner
What year did James B. Sumner conduct his study?
1926
What hormone regulates blood sugar levels in the body by distributing glucose in the liver?
Insulin
What organ releases insulin?
Pancreas
True or False: The pancreas is both an endocrine and exocrine gland.
TRUE
What hormone increases blood sugar levels?
Glucagon
True or False: Hormones are a type of protein.
TRUE
True or False: Alpha cells in the pancreas are responsible for releasing glucagon, while beta cells in the pancreas release insulin.
FALSE. Alpha cells release insulin and beta cells release glucagon
Who was the first to sequence insulin?
Frederick Sanger
Who shared the 1962 Nobel Prize in Chemistry?
Max Perutz and Sir John Crowley
Perutz and Crowley won the Nobel Prize by solving what two proteins?
Hemoglobin and Myoglobin
It is the protein responsible for the redness in red blood cells.
Hemoglobin
It is the protein that delivers oxygen to the tissues.
Hemoglobin
Protein that causes redness of muscle.
Myoglobin
The three-dimensional structures of hemoglobin and myoglobin were first determine through ____.
X-ray diffraction analysis
Proteins can be broken down into separate units by the use of ___.
Enzymes
Proteins consist of what two groups?
Amino group and acid group
What group in proteins is considered basic?
Amino group
What group in proteins is considered acidic?
Acid group
Proteins are able to react to both acids and bases. There, they are ___.
Amphoteric
What percentage of proteins is carbon?
55% Carbon
What percentage of proteins is hydrogen?
7% Hydrogen
What percentage of proteins is oxygen?
23% Oxygen
What percentage of proteins is nitrogen?
15% Nitrogen
Aside from CHON, what are the two additional elements that make up proteins and what are their respective percentages?
1% Sulfur
Less than 1% Phosphorus
What proteins are involved in communication?
Nerves
What proteins are involved in defense?
Antibodies
Hormones are proteins that are involved in what bodily process?
Metabolic regulation
What proteins are involved in oxygen transport?
Hemoglobin
Enzymes are proteins involved in what bodily process?
Biochemical catalysis
They are specialized proteins involved in defending the body.
Antibodies
Antibodies defend against ____, which are foreign substances that enter the body.
Antigens
True or False: A foreign substance must be pathogenic (causes disease) in order to be considered an antigen.
FALSE. All substances that are foreign to the body, whether pathogenic or not, are antigens.
How do antibodies counteract against antigens?
By immobilizing them so they can be destroyed by white blood cells.
These proteins are responsible for muscle contraction and muscle movement.
Contractile proteins
What are examples of contractile proteins?
Actin and myosin
They are proteins that facilitate biochemical reactions.
Enzymes
Enzymes speed up chemical reactions, so they are often referred to as ___.
Catalysts
These are messenger proteins which help to coordinate certain bodily activities.
Hormonal proteins
Give three examples of hormonal proteins.
Insulin, oxytocin, somatotropin
This hormonal protein regulates glucose metabolism by controlling blood sugar concentration.
Insulin
What protein stimulates contractions during childbirth?
Oxytocin
It is a growth hormone that stimulates protein production in muscle cells.
Somatotropin
It is also known as a growth inhibiting hormone.
Somatostatin
Proteins that are stringy and fibrous, which allow them to provide support for various body parts.
Structural proteins
Give three examples of structural proteins.
Keratin, collagen, and elastin
This structural protein strengthens protective coverings.
Keratin
Where can keratin commonly be found in the human body?
Skin and hair
Where can keratin commonly be found in animals?
Quills, feathers, horns, and beaks
These two structural proteins provide support for connective tissues such as tendons and ligaments.
Collagen and elastin
These type of proteins store amino acids for the body to use later.
Storage proteins
It is a protein that stores iron in hemoglobin.
Ferritin
Where does ferritin store protein?
In hemoglobin
They are carrier proteins which move molecules from one place to another around the body.
Transport proteins
Give two examples of transport proteins.
Hemoglobin and cytochromes
A transport protein that is responsible for transporting oxygen through the blood.
Hemoglobin
Hemoglobin carries out its function via what type of cell?
Red blood cells
Transport proteins that operates in the electron transport chain as electron carrier proteins.
Cytochromes
True or False: Anemia can be hereditary.
TRUE. While most forms of anemia are not due to genetics, there are some which can be passed down through the genes, such as sickle cell anemia.
What are some examples of protein-rich foods?
Lean white meats, soy, beef, beans, eggs, dairy, seafood.
True or False: There are proteins which break down other proteins.
TRUE. Proteolytic enzymes or proteases are proteins that break down proteins.
