Biochemistry - Amino Acids

Amino acids - These act as the monomers of proteins. They make up around 50% of a living organism and consist of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen and nitrogen.

Functions of proteins:

• They can be used in structural components: e.g. muscle and bone
• They are membrane carriers.
• All enzymes are proteins
• Many hormones are proteins
• Antibodies are proteins

Joining amino acids together

Amino acids are join together through a condensation reaction where an amide link is formed from the removal of water. The bond formed is also known as a peptide bond which can be broken through a hydrolysis reaction.

Primary Structure

The amino acid sequence of a protein is known as its primary structure.

Secondary Structure

A chain of amino…