Essay Sample on Amino Acids in Human Body

Transport of Nitrogen From Muscle to Liver

In the liver, the initial step involves the elimination of nitrogen from the amino acid. Since the body muscles do not have enzymes of the urea cycle, nitrogen must be produced in a form that can be taken in by the liver and converted into urea. Transportation of nitrogen from the muscle in two principal forms, Glutamate is through transamination reactions, nitrogen is then transferred to pyruvate to form alanine. Which is later released into the blood. The liver then takes up the alanine and changes it back to pyruvate by transamination. Since pyruvate can only be used for gluconeogenesis, the amino group appears as urea eventually.

Is your time best spent reading someone else’s essay? Get a 100% original essay FROM A CERTIFIED WRITER!

Save 25%

Nitrogen Fixation and the Groups of Organisms That Can Carry Out This Conversion

The process by which nitrogen in the atmosphere is converted into nitrogenous related compounds or ammonia is called nitrogen fixation. The enzyme responsible for conversion is nitrogenase enzyme. There two kinds of nitrogen-fixing bacteria. The first kind is symbiotic (mutualistic)bacteria which includes Rhizobium in leguminous plants, Azospirillum species found in cereals and Frankia which is found in dicotyledonous species. The second kind is nonsymbiotic bacteria and it includes Clostridium, Beijerinckia and blue-green algae (cyanobacteria).

Nitrogenase Complex and Roles of Its Reductase and Nitrogenase Components

Nitrogenase complex is an enzyme whose role is to fix atmospheric nitrogen into ammonia. In as much as nitrogen is present abundantly in the atmosphere, many organisms take nitrogen in forms like nitrate or ammonia since nitrogen cannot be utilized directly. Reductase accepts electrons from a reductant called ferredoxin and delivers them Nitrogenase. Initially, Reductase donates electrons Nitrogenase from solution. Nitrogenase then binds a molecule of nitrogen, accepts protons and electrons from reductase, and adds them to Nitrogen molecule which is accompanied by the release of Ammonia.

The Essential Amino Acids for Humans and Explain Why They Are Essential

In general, there are nine essential amino acids. It is essential that they are included in the diet since the body cannot produce them. The nine essential proteins include Lysine, Histidine, tryptophan, valine, isoleucine, phenylalanine, threonine, methionine, and leucine. The essential amino acids are vital since they are the building blocks of proteins and they help produce proteins that break down food, repair tissue, and allow our body to grow.

Single-Step Biosyntheses of Alanine, Aspartate, and Glutamate

Generally, amino acids can be biosynthesized from central metabolites by single-step reactions. For instance, Glutamate is synthesized by addition of a-Ketoglutarate to ammonia

Aspartate is synthesized by the transfer of oxaloacetate to glutamate

Alanine is synthesized by transamination of glutamate to pyruvate.