Second Messangers

Question 1

What is the process of second messangers in cellular control?

Answer 1

1st messanger - hormones - e.g. adrenaline or glucagon
- arrives at target cell and binds to receptor (protein) on cell surface membrane
- receptor protein has a molecule binded onto it - an enzyme that converts ATP to cAMP
- cAMP is the 2nd messanger - because it passes the signal from the 1st messanger and delivering the signal inside the cell
- cAMP will go off into the cell and bind to another enzyme - protein kinase A - and change the shape of
the teritary structure so it makes it complimentary to glycagon - break down glycogen - glycogenolysis - only works when
cAMP is binded onto it

• if cAMP is not binded onto it, the enzyme is not going to be complentary to glycogen