CHAPTER 4 : CHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF THE CELL

PREPARED BY :
MUHD FAZLI B. DOLLAH
SBPI GOPENG
• Elements : C, H, O, S, N & P.
• Large & complex molecules
• Monomer : amino acid
• Molecules of amino acids are joined
together through condensation
• Amino acids are joined together by peptide
bond
• Amino acid + amino acid  dipeptide +
water
– Polypeptides are formed when many
molecules of amino acids are joined together
to form long chains of a.a.
• Polypeptides broken down through a series of
hydrolysis reactions to become dipeptides & finally
amino acids.
• 20 amino acids found in the proteins
of living cells
• Two types of a.a. :
• Essential amino acids : cannot synthesised
by body cells
• Non-essential amino acids : can be
synthesised by body cells
• Food that contain all the essential
a.a. are called 1st class protein. (milk,
meat, eggs)
• Food that lacks a few essential a.a.
are 2nd class protein. (corn)
 Protein Structures
• Primary structure : a long straight
chain of polypeptide
• Secondary structure : coiled to form
helix or pleated sheet.
• Tertiary structure : helix or pleated
sheet is folded in various ways to
form globular protein
• Quarternary structure : folded
protein chains are joined together to
form a single protein