Protein synthesis is very important. The human body contains about 100,000 different types of protein. The body needs protein to grow, heal, and carry about nearly every chemical reaction in the body. Proteins can have bizarre names. For example, the protein Pikachurin is a retinal protein that was named after a Pokémon character Pikachu. The protein Sonic Hedgehog (Shh) was named after Sonic the Hedgehog. There is even a blue protein named Ranasmurfin, after the Smurfs.
Protein deficiency can cause serious health problems, so it is really important you eat enough. You could try changing your diet! Insects are actually more nutritious than many other common forms of protein. For example, 100 grams of top sirloin beef contain 29 grams of protein and 21 grams of fat. However, 100 grams of grasshopper contain 20 grams of protein and just 6 grams of fat. Additionally, farming insects emits 10 times less greenhouse gasses than farming livestock. Grasshoppers and gravy!! Delicious!!! Even better if you add an egg, which has the highest quality of protein found in any food.
GCSE (Edxcel) scientists – you need to be able to explain the synthesis of protein. For help, try our new guide “How to work with Protein Synthesis”. It includes a description of transcription and translation. As always there are questions to try, and answers to check your understanding.
Click on the picture below to see the guide.
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