Enzymes and Hormones

Proteins. The most abundant and physiologically diverse natural biopolymers are proteins, which make up enzymes, hormones, and stmctural material such as hair, skin, and connective tissue. The monomer units of natural proteins, a-amino acids, condense to form dipeptides, tripeptides, polypeptides, and proteins. 

Proteins such as antibodies, enzymes, hormones and vaccine antigens can be used to prevent, diagnose and treat a range of diseases. Such molecules are therefore of paramount importance in health and medicine. Historically, many of these proteins have been isolated from human or animal sources. However, the low quantities present in such source material coupled with safety risks and high purification costs have limited the availability of protein therapeutics and vaccines for many types of disease. 

The membrane-bound carbohydrates exist as glycoproteins and glycolipids. Although the functional importance of these substances is far from proven they appear to be essential parts in phenomena such as cellular adhesion, control of differentiation and cell growth, and the binding by cells of enzymes, hormones and toxins. 

Many enzymes, hormones, and other physiologically active proteins are synthesized as inactive precursors or zymogens (2). The zymogens... 

In addition to regulating the direction of metabolic pathways, cells, especially those in multicellular organisms, also exert control at three different levels allosteric enzymes, hormones, and enzyme concentration. 

Based on size and shape, the proteins are also subdivided into globular and fibrous proteins. Globular proteins are mostly water-soluble and fragile in nature. Example- enzymes, hormones and antibodies. Fibrous proteins are tough and water-insoluble. They are used to build a variety of materials that support and protect specific tissues. Example- Skin, Hair, Fingernails and Keratin. 

Polymeric or proteinaceous microspheres are used to introduce drugs to specific locations in the body. The coating material acts as a semipermeable membrane, permitting slow release and high concentration of a drug at the desired site. Enzymes, hormones, and other biochemical substances can be temporarily immobilized by this technique. 

In the next chapter, we will introduce and discuss some of the enzymes, hormones, and proteins that use metals and other chemical elements to keep our bodies safe, strong, and productive. 

Enzymes, hormones, and what I call special proteins are very important in how they influence our body chemistry, which is why I ve devoted a chapter to them. The reason they are so significant is that dietary deficiencies of any chemical elements needed by them usually have a drastic impact on health, tending to do more harm to our bodies in a shorter period of time than deficiency effects on any other body parts. All three are made of the chemical elements I ve discussed in previous... 

Metals conmion in enzymes include calcium, cobalt (B12), copper, iron, magnesium, manganese, molybdenum, nickel, potassium, sodium, tungsten, and zinc. Nonmetals in enzymes, hormones, and other proteins include sulfur (as part of three common amino acids) and phosphate in phosphoproteins, nucleic acids, and proteins called hormonal second messengers. ... 

I m sure there are many more trace element-containing special proteins than the ones I know about, but this knowledge seems to be on the cutting edge of what s happening in microbiology metalloprotein research these days. There are fifty thousand proteins in the human body, many of them discovered only in the last ten years. We can safely assume that there are more proteins in which trace elements play a critical role than those we know about at this time. I will present the trace elements I know about along with the enzymes, hormones, and special proteins for each metal. 

Now, let s look at the enzymes, hormones, and other special proteins that have trace elements as key structural parts or as activators. 

In recent years, a growing Interest In hydrogels as solid supports for enzyme, hormones and pharmacons has become evident. Poly(hydroxyethyl) methacrylate), PHEMA, has been utilized to entrap trypsin and glucose oxidase (1 ) but the radical systems... 

Protein Complex organic macromolecule composed of more chains of amino acids containing carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen fundamental components of all living cells and many substances such as enzymes, hormones, and antibodies. 

Microelements are present in soils only in very low concentrations, mostly up to 0.001%. In the life of plants and animals, including man, they play a very important role, since they are components of vitamins, enzymes, hormones and other biological substances with a high physiological activity. Their insufficiency can lead to different diseases and disturbances and thus, they are a focus of agricultural and nutritional interest. 

Polymers and biopolymers are indispensable materials in pharmacy. The number and importance of polymer-structured active substances (e.g. enzymes, hormones, and antibiotics) are increasing continuously. Interesting references to auxiliary materials of polymeric character were already made as long ago as in the ancient written records on medicines, e.g. Ebers Papyrus, the Bible, or Greek epics. Karl Thoma, one of the most prominent researchers in this field, talked about the explosive increase of auxiliary materials used in modern drug preparations. 

Proteins act as enzymes, hormones, and antibodies. They maintain fluid balance and acid and base balance. They also transport substances such as oxygen, vitamins, and minerals to target cells throughout the body. Structural proteins, such as collagen and keratin, are responsible for the formation of bones, teeth, hair, and the outer layer of skin, and they help maintain the structure of blood vessels and other tissnes. In contrast, motor proteins use energy and convert it into some form of mechanical work (e.g., dividing cells and contracting muscle). 

Hnman body uses minerals to activate the enzymes, hormones, and other molecules that participate in the function and maintenance of life processes. Minerals are absolutely essential, as they cannot be synthesized by the body, but must be accumulated from the trace amounts present in soil or mineral rich waters. ... 

Analytical chemists have always admired the supersensitive natural detection devices built into organisms as part of elaborate control systems used to regulate the levels of various crucial chemicals, such as enzymes, hormones, and neurotransmitters. Be-... 

Compared to the evaporation procedure, extraction of organic solvent occurs relatively more rapidly, therefore, microspheres produced by solvent extraction are more porous usually resulting in faster release of drugs. Hence, for sustained release purposes, solvent evaporation is preferred. Solvent extraction could be more appropriate and effective compared to evaporation method for encapsulation of delicate and sensitive drugs such as proteins and peptides, enzymes, hormones, and antigens that are susceptible to thermal degradation at temperatures above room temperature (i.e.,... 

As shown in I Table 12.4, the functions of minerals are consistent with their classification as major or trace and with the amount required daily in the diet. For example, compounds of some major minerals (Ca and P) are the primary inorganic structural components of bones and teeth. Other major minerals (Na, K, Cl, and Mg) form principal ions that are distributed throughout the body s various fluids. Some trace minerals are components of vitamins (Co), enzymes (Zn and Se), hormones (I), or specialized proteins (Fe and Cu). Thus, we see that even though trace minerals are required in small quantities, their involvement in critical enzymes, hormones, and the like makes them equally as important for good health as the major minerals. 

Due to its hydrophilic nature, dextrans have also been used to conjugate bioactive substances (e.g., dmgs, enzymes, hormones, and antibodies) to prolong circulation lifetimes, increase stability in vivo, or depress antigenicity. For example, dextran nanoparticles have been conjugated with insulin for oral delivery. These nanocarriers can protect insulin from degradation in the gut and modulate release profiles. ... 

Ionic concentration gradients across membranes serve a variety of functions in cellular activity such as maintainance of resting potential, transmission of nerve impulse, driving cotransport, and secretion or activation of enzymes, hormones and other substances. Thus, studies of the kinetics and mechanism of ion transport across membranes are essential for the understanding of many physiological processes. 

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