Questions and Exercises

1. Write the primary structure for the polypeptide of Ala-Gly-Cys-Phe-Gly.

2. Will the polypeptide in question 1 give a positive or negative result in the

following tests for a protein or amino acid? Explain why or why not.

3. Why does a protein undergo denaturation?

When a protein is denatured, it basically loses the structure it has while in

its biologically active form. This is brought about by external factors that disrupt
the interactions that are happening between proteins at the molecular level. The
denaturation is just more or less a reaction to any external stress placed on the
molecule, such as heating or the addition of a strong acid or a base.

4. Under what circumstances would the denaturation of a protein be useful?

As has already been mentioned before, proteins are the essential building
blocks of all living organisms, and so bacteria are not exempt from this criterion.
The denaturation of proteins in organisms like bacteria essentially kills them off
and could help as a remedy to a form of bacterial problems and the like. This is in
relation to the reason why food is cooked.