Protein and their diverse functions

By Stacey Roman

Ch.3/Concept 3.5/Pg. 55-59

Most of had begun to learn about protein when we were taught about the MyPlate, a nutrition
guideline,  and the importance of having a certain amount per day to assist in growth. As we got older
some of us began to look at our own physical stature and maybe interested in building muscle. Most of
the information in nutrition books or online will tell you how protein can help build muscles and how
one can consume protein shakes and such. Up to this point, we can understand that protein is essential.

Now stepping away from nutrition and diving into the science of biology, we can begin understand how
diverse protein can function. The monomer of the protein are amino acids and because there are 20
different amino acids, it can be grouped and structured in various ways to create a different function
from one another.  In our textbook it momentarily states eight functions that we see later on in the
textbook in more detail. I will outline these eight functions and give examples of how they work in our
body or with our body.

1. Enzymatic proteins: This protein acts as a form of a catalyst to speed up chemical reactions
within a cell. A few examples of an enzymatic protein are amylase and lipase.

1. Amylase is an enzyme that functions to breakdown starches and turn them into sugar
which then gets released

2. Lipase is an enzyme that breaks down fats into fatty acids and glycerol.

2. Defensive proteins: These proteins are important for our immune system. They provide
protection against unknown pathogens, or in other words, diseases. An example would be
antibodies.  

1. Antibodies defend the immune system by binding to the unknown and/or harmful
pathogen and killing it off.

3. Storage proteins: exactly as it says, it stores proteins. A few examples are ovalbumin and casein.

1. Ovalbumin is the protein found in egg whites. It stores protein thus making eggs a great
source of protein for our nutrition, aside from animal meat. It as well serves a purpose
for the growing embryo of the egg.

2. Casein is the protein found in dairy products. It is also the protein source for baby
mammals.

4. Transport proteins: This protein transports specific substances from one area to another. An
example that courses through our body all the time are hemoglobin.

1. Hemoglobin is a red protein that transports oxygen through the bloodstream from our
lungs to the rest of the body.

5. Hormonal proteins: hormonal protein coordinates the activity of an organism. A great example
would be insulin.
 1. Insulin helps regulate blood sugar concentration by signaling other tissues to take in
glucose from the blood. This hormonal protein helps diabetics with have high or low
blood sugar and thus help maintain a healthy level of blood sugar concentration.

6. Receptor proteins: We see this protein in cell signaling. Receptor proteins have a function to
bind to signaling molecules outside the membrane to receive a chemical message and send it
into the cell.

7. Contractile and motor proteins: their main function in one word is movement. We can imagine
this protein working in our muscles. Examples include actin and myosin.

1. Both actin and myosin assist in contraction of the muscle

8. Structural proteins: provide support in structure and/or shape. Examples that mostly pertain to
us would be keratin and collagen and elastin.

1. Keratin is a protein important for the epidermis. They glue to each other to form a
protective layer on the outer layer of the skin.

2. Collagen and Elastin protein support the structure of the connective tissue.

In conclusion protein has many functions from the many ways amino  acids can be arranged and folded.
It is the building block of life. It is what keeps us going, beginning to work within our cells and out
towards our body systems.

Work Cited:

Learning, L. (n.d.). Biology for Majors . Retrieved from https://courses.lumenlearning.com/wm-

biology1/chapter/reading-function-of-proteins/

Robb, A. (n.d.). Keratin Protein & the Epidermis. Retrieved from

https://study.com/academy/lesson/keratin-protein-the-epidermis.html

Urry, Lisa A., et al. Campbell Biology in Focus. Second Edition Pearson, 2020.