| Term | Definition |
|---|
| x-ray crystallography | a technique used to determine the three-dimensional structure of a molecule |
| polar | the chemical characteristic of containing both a positive and negative charge on opposite sides of a molecule |
| primary structure | the order and type of amino acids found in a polypeptide chain |
| secondary structure | the structure of a protein (alpha helix and beta sheets) that results from hydrogen bonding |
| tertiary structure | the structure of a protein that results from several interactions, the presence of charged or uncharged "R" groups, and hydrogen bonding |
| alpha helix | Tight coils due to hydrogen bonding can be found in several proteins, resulting in helices. |
| quaternary structure | the structure of a protein resulting from the association of two or more polypeptide chains |
| glycoprotein | a protein which has had sugar groups added to it |
| glycosylated | descriptive of molecules to which sugar groups have been added |
| CD4 cells | reffering to human white blood cells, which contain the cell surface recognition protein CD4 |
| reverse transcriptase | an enzyme that transcribes a complementary strand of DNA from a strand of RNA |
| antigens | foreign proteins or molecules that are the target of binding by antibodies |
| epitope | the specific region on a molecule that an antibody binds to |
| ELISA | short for enzyme-linked immunospecific assay, a technique that measures the amount of protein or antibody in a solution |
| monoclonal antibody | a type of antibody that is directed against a single epitope |
| hybridoma | a hybrid cell used to generate monoclonal antibodies that results from the fusion of immortal tumor cells with specific antibody-producing white blood cells (B-cells) |
| protein synthesis | the generation of new proteins from amino acid sub-units; in the cell, it includes transcription and translation |
| transcription | the process of deciphering a DNA nucleotide codes and converting it into an RNA nucleotide code; the RNA carries the genetic message to a ribosome for the translation into a protein code |
| codon | a set of three nucleotides on a strand of mRNA that codes for a particular amino acid in a protein chain |
| translation | the process of reading an mRNA nucleotide and converting it into a sequence of amino acids |
| tRNA | a type of ribonucleic acid (RNA) that shuttles amino acids into the ribosome for protein synthesis |
| peptidyl transferase | an enzyme found in the ribosome that builds polypeptide chains by connecting amino acids into long chains through peptide bonds |
| phosphorylation | adding phosphate groups |
| cleavage | process of splitting the polypeptide into two or more strands |
| Taq polymerase | a DNA synthesis enzyme that can withstand the high temperatures used in PCR |
| substrate | the molecule that an enzyme acts on |
| cofactor | an atom or molecule that an enzyme requires to function |
| lock and key model | a model used to describe how enzymes function, in which the enzyme and substrate make an exact molecule fit at the active site, triggering catalysis |
| induced fit model | a model used to describe how enzymes function, in which a substrate squeezes into an active site and induces the enzyme's activity |
| optimum temperature | the temperature at which and enzyme achieves maximum activity. Approx. 37 Degrees C |
| denaturation | the process in which proteins lose their conformation or three-dimensional shape |
| optimum pH | the pH at which an enzyme achieves maximum activity |
| PAGE | short for polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, a process in which proteins and small DNA molecules are separated by gel electrophoresis on vertical gels made of the synthetic polymer, polyacrylamide. |
| Coomassie Blue | a dye that stains proteins blue and allows them to be visualized |
| silver stain | a stain used for visualizing proteins |
| taxonomic relationships | how species are related to one another in terms of evolution |
| biomanufacturing | industry focusing on the production of proteins and other products created by biotechnology |
| kinases | phosphorylates proteins (adds proteins) |
| phosphates | dephosphorylates proteins |
Combine with other sets
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