Mugavero
Mugavero
Brook Mugavero
Ms. Leiva
AP Biology, Period ?
4 September 2014
FRQ #1
Proteins are large complex molecules that are major building blocks of all living organisms. Proteins are diverse and have a wide range of responsibilities within an organism. However as unique as individual proteins are, the chemical composition of all proteins consists of polymers that come from the same array of twenty amino acids and all proteins share three levels of structure. Yet each amino acid has its own "R" group or side chain which makes an amino acid polar, nonpolar or electrically charged. The different linear arrangement of these amino acids contributes to the specific function and overall the unique structure each protein has.
The chemical composition of a protein consists of polymers that contain an arrangement of amino acids. Each amino acid is composed of a central alpha carbon, which bonds to four partners known as the amino group, the carboxyl group, a hydrogen atom, and the side chain or R group.
These amino acids form polymers by creating peptide bonds between the carboxyl group of one amino acid with the amino group of another through a dehydration reaction where a water molecule is ultimately lost in the process. This process eventually produces a polypeptide. The arrangement of amino acids in this single stranded polypeptide, make up the primary structure of a protein. Next is the secondary structure and it is responsible for the coils and folds in the polypeptide chain. These coils and folds assist in the proteins overall shape. There are two main types structures for a secondary structure, one is an alpha helix which is a coil united through hydrogen bonding between every fourth amino acid, and the other secondary structure is the beta pleated sheet which resembles a fold and...