BioBuilde: Master Amino Acid Pattern (MAP) and The Discovery of the Ideal Amino Acid Pattern for Human Nutrition

Master Amino Acid Pattern (MAP) and The Discovery of the Ideal Amino Acid Pattern for Human Nutrition

Maintaining Normal Protein Turnover Rates

Proteins in the body are not static (they are synthesized and degraded continually). The rate of turnover of proteins varies widely. For example, some proteins such as digestive enzymes and plasma proteins are rapidly degraded, having half-lives measured in hour or days.

However, structural proteins, such as collagen, are metabolically stable and have half-lives measured in months or years. The rate of turnover of proteins tends to follow their function in the body, i.e., proteins whose concentrates must be regulated (e.g., enzyme) or that act as signals (e.g., peptide hormones) have relatively high rates of synthesis and degradation as a means of regulation concentrations.

On the other hand, structural proteins such as collagen and myofibrillar proteins or secreted plasma have relatively long lifetimes.

Inadequate Protein Synthesis

Proteins are synthesized in all cells of the body from amino acids. Chains of amino acids fold in different ways to create the structure or shape of the different types of proteins that make up the body.

The shape of a protein determines its biological activity or function. On the basis of their three-dimensional structure, proteins can be classified as fibrous proteins (long, linear, pleated sheets) or globular proteins (roughly spherical shaped).

Inadequate protein synthesis can affect any of the types of proteins or the structures they form. The following are just some examples:

FIBROUS PROTEINS:

Structural

F Collagen:

Type 1 — skin, bone, tendon, blood vessels, cornea

Type II — cartilage, intervertebral disk, vitreous body

Type III — blood vessels, fetal skin

Type IV — basement membrane

F Elastin: trachea, lungs, large blood vessels, elastic ligaments and joints

F Kerain: skin, hair, nail

Movement

F Actin & Myosin — muscle cells

F Mictotubules — cilia (respiratory tract, fallopian tubes)

GLOBULAR PROTEINS

Enzymes

digestive enzymes (amylase, protease, peptidase)

anti-oxidant enzymes (peroxidase; e.g., glutathione peroxidase used in detoxification)

Transport Molecules

hemoglobin, K+ Channel

Hormones

insulin, growth hormone, calcitonin, glucagons, luteinizing hormone, thyrotropin-releasing hormone, antidiuritic hormone, oxytocin, ACTH, gastrin, angiotensin I & II

Neurotransmitters

endorphins, enkephalins

Immune Cells

antibodies, complement proteins

pH Buffer Proteins

albumin, hemoglobin

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