Proteins elephant

Fig. 7.4(b) Palate of foetal African Elephant reception area for finger of trunk (PI. 7.1) and for uptake of protein-bound signal complexes. PS, palatine sulcus and pp, palatine pits PR, ridges (from Eales, 1926). 

Although equal amounts of the two possible forms are generated in every synthesis of amino acids, (almost) only L-amino acids are incorporated into proteins and peptides. This phenomenon is valid for the amino acids in all life forms, from the bacterium to the elephant. But there are exceptions some antibiotics contain D-amino acids in their proteins, and these also occur in a few components of cell walls. Here, the D-amino acids have a certain protecting function with respect to degradation enzymes, which are specialised to deal with L-amino acids. 

Lazar, J., Greenwood, D.R., Rasmussen, L.E.L. and Prestwich, G.D. (2002) Molecular and functional characterization of an odorant binding protein of the Asian elephant, Elephas maximas Implications for the role of lipocalins in mammalian olfaction. Biochemistry 41, 11786-11794. 

The female elephant pheromone (Z)-7-dodecenyl acetate occurs bound to urinary proteins. When it is taken up by a male elephant, the acetate is bound to proteins of the trunk mucus. This might facilitate transport of the pheromone to the vicinity of the sensory epithelium of the vomeronasal organ (Rasmussen and Schulte, 1998). 

Frontalin in the temporal gland secretion of Asian elephants is bound to elephant albumin (Schulte etal, 2005). The bulk of the secretion of the chin gland of the rabbit is protein (Goodrich and Mykytowycz, 1972). 

Wolin S. L. (1994) From the elephant to E. coir. SRP-dependent protein targeting. Cell 77 787. 

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