Protein CHEYENNE

Vocabulary

Protein: an organic compound composed of amino acids, held together in strands of varying structures by peptide bonds.
Amino Acids: small organic compounds composed of an amine group, a carboxyl group, and at least one atom called an R group. Peptide Bond: a chemical bond that binds amino acids, between the amine group of one amino acid and the carboxyl group of another Dipeptide: two amino acids bound together by a peptide bond (smallest protein) Polypeptide: more amino acids bind on to either end of the dipeptide, making it bigger Primary Structure: linear sequence of amino acids in a protein.

Secondary Structure: pattern in a protein when amino acids begin to turn and twist, forming shapes like helices
Tertiary Structure: polypeptides fold back onto each other to form folded proteins Quaternary Structure: two or more polypeptide chains collaborating and associating to function as a single molecule

Protein Structures
Acid Acid Acid Primary Structure: linear sequence of amino acids in a protein

Tertiary Structure: polypeptides fold back onto each other to form folded proteins

Secondary Structure: pattern in a protein when amino acids begin to turn and twist, forming shapes like helices

Quaternary Structure
All proteins go up to at least the tertiary level in complexity. Some latch on to other peptide chains to form the fourth stage, the quaternary structure.

Vocabulary

Essential Amino Acids: required by body to perform functions, but must be ingested through diet because they cannot be produced by the body
Phytoestrogens: chemically mimic structure of estrogens and can trigger either an increase or decrease in estrogen production Methionine: an essential amino acid that is only one of two to contain sulfur: hydrophobic, prone to oxidization, and plays a major role in metabolism. Complete Protein: a protein source that contains all of the essential amino acids Incomplete Protein: low in one or more of the essential amino acids Lean Protein: protein not found in a fatty source/low in fat Arginine: semi-essential amino acid. Triggers body to make protein and affects many body functions, like making nitric oxide. Nuts are a great source! Nitric Oxide: helps ease restricted blood flow and un-clot blood, meaning lower heart disease.

Vocabulary

Polyphenols: chemical chains that are antioxidants and fight DNA-damaging free radicals. Good sources of polyphenols include green teas, blueberries, pomegranates, and other antioxidant-rich foods (dark chocolate too!). Two types are isoflavones and lignans. Isoflavones: polyphenic compounds that exert estrogen-like effects and lower LDL cholesterol just like phytoestrogens Lignans: polyphenols found in plants that, when consumed, convert into estrogen-like compounds.

The antioxidant has an extra electron, giving it to the free radical stabilizes it.

Antioxidant

Free Radical

Free Radical

How One Gets Protein

The stomach generates pepsin when hydrochloric acid levels in the stomach go up in preparation to digest food.

How One Gets Protein

The hydrochloric acid catalyzes the pepsin molecules to turn into the active form of pepsin.

These active pepsin molecules then break down the proteins in the stomach and turn them into peptide chains.

How One Gets Protein

The process continues in a part of the small intestine called the duodenum. The duodenum is against the pancreas, which excretes pancreatic fluid into the small intestine. Pancreatic juice is a digestive mix of fluid and enzymes.

Pancreatic fluid contains the enzymes trypsin, chymotrypsin, elastase, and carboxypeptidase. Each of these enzymes breaks a specific type of peptide bond in proteins.

How One Gets Protein

These broken proteins are now simplified into tiny peptide chains, a few bigger than tripeptides. They pass through the small intestine and the tiny peptide chains are further broken down in the brush border of the small intestine by the enzymes aminopeptidase and dipeptidase.

Aminopeptidase breaks down larger peptides into little tripeptides. Dipeptidase breaks down the peptide bond between two amino acids and undoes the peptide.

How One Gets Protein

After the enzymes have broken the peptides down into small enough chunks, or just plain amino acids, and are absorbed in ways we learned previously: active transport and sodium-dependent channels.

Through capillary action, amino acids diffuse out of the epithelial brush border cells. They diffuse through the interstitial fluid (yellow in the picture) and into the blood vessels, where they can be transported throughout the body.

How One Gets Protein

Eat food Pepsinogen simplifies proteins into peptides Dipeptidase and aminopeptidase break down di/tripeptides Amino acids and dipeptides move into epithelial cells

Make hydrochloric acid

Produce pepsinogen

Pancreatic fluid enzymes break down special peptide bonds

Hydrochloric acid plus pepsinogen catalyzes pepsin (active form)

Peptides are now mostly tripeptides and dipeptides

Through capillary action, amino acids move into bloodstream

Pepsinogen simplifies proteins into peptides

Dipeptides and tripeptides move into villa

Reuptake channels in other cells take in amino acids, new proteins built

How One Uses Protein

The body takes the amino acids after the digestive process and, through peptide bonds, proteins reassemble into shapes or protein types that the body needs. Amino acids can rebuild into antigen proteins that act as cell markers, motor proteins that help with cell movement and functions and many other types. One, for example, is hemoglobin.

Hemoglobin is a quaternary protein. Each heme group (blue or red) forms an oxygencarrying pouch. This is how hemoglobin carries oxygen in red blood cells.

Positive Effects of Protein

Protein in General
Methionine, an essential amino acid, may help reduce risk of colon and breast cancer (no study specified).
Replacing carbohydrates with proteins cuts back on LDL and increases HDL (increases bad cholesterol, decreases good cholesterol) (no study specified).
Dietary protein may reduce the risk of heart disease (Nurses Health Study). Women whose protein accounted for about a quarter or daily categories had a 25% lower risk of heart disease than women who did not have as much protein (15% of caloric intake).

Cancer cells and tumors are especially dependent on methionine, moreso than healthy cells

High-protein foods slow the movement of food throughout the digestive system, preventing sugar rush and storage of sugar as fat.

Those who eat more protein (and therefore less carbohydrates) may live longer than those with lowerprotein diets (Nurses Health Study).

Positive Effects of Protein

Vegetable/Soy Protein
50 grams of soy a day reduced total cholesterol in subjects by 9.3 percent, LDL cholesterol by 12.9 percent, and triglycerides by 10.5 percent. People with high cholesterol experienced even more exaggerated benefits, and overall risk of heart disease lowered by 20% (New England Journal of Medicine). Plant protein sources could help sustain food production all over the world.

Italicized points are highly debatable

Japanese women, who eat lots of soy, have low rates of breast cancer (no study specified)
Soy helps prevent prostate cancer (no study specified) Soy can improve memory and thinking skills (no study specified)

High-fiber foods and vegetables reduces cravings for sugars and empty calories, because the fiber keeps the digestive system active longer to break it al down.

Vegetable protein is much better for the environment to produce than animal protein. For every 1 pound of beef, it takes 20 pounds of plant feed (usually environmentally stressing plants like corn) (The Guide to Effective Environmental Choices, Consumers Three Rivers Press. 1999).

Vegetable protein sources are also a source of dietary fiber.

Vegetables are plants and contain collagen in their cell walls, which acts as dietary fiber.

Negative Effects of Protein

Animal Protein
Animal protein is a gigantic environmental stressor.
Lean sources of animal protein, like fish, are a stressor to the environment as well. Besides the fact that they are easily poisoned by ocean runoff, we are destroying the fish resources in the ocean.

Animal protein sources like beef and pork are fatty sources of protein, making the protein ingestion less healthy.

Vegetable protein is much better for the environment to produce than animal protein. For every 1 pound of beef, it takes 20 pounds of plant feed (usually environmentally stressing plants like corn) (The Consumers Guide to Effective Environmental Choices, Three Rivers Press. 1999).

Pork and chicken, two other major sources of protein in this country, require 7 and 4 pounds (The Consumers Guide to Effective Environmental Choices, Three Rivers Press. 1999).

Biomagnification occurs easily in the ocean (increase in a chemical through trophic levels).

Fat from food sources causes LDL buildup in the cardiac system of humans, raising risk of heart disease.

1 pound of beef creates 17 times more water pollution and 20 times more habitat alteration (The Union of Concerned Scientists).

Negative Effects of Protein

Vegetable/Soy Protein
In one randomized trial, some women taking soy supplements actually experienced greater cancer cell multiplication than those not taking the pill. Japanese studies conflict on whether or not soy actually leads to any anti-breast cancer properties. The risk of breast cancer actually rises the longer amounts of time people spend as vegetarians (U.S. Seventh-Day Adventists).

Several studies using placebos showed that soy pills were no more effective than fake sugar pills at stopping menopausal hot flashes.

Soy and many legumes contain high levels of phytoestrogens, which can mimic estrogen in humans but also block it. Isoflavones and lignans, common in plants and vegetarian diets, mess with or block estrogen levels or effects in the human body, which can affect cells in areas most affected by estrogen, such as the breasts in women. This can lead to an increased or decreases risk of cancersthe studies are unclear.

In Summary:

Eat your protein from mostly vegetable sources and some animal sources. Make sure it mostly comes in the form of lean and complete proteins! Legumes like quinoa are an excellent choice, being lean, complete, vegetable protein. A good example of lean animal protein is fish.