Protein Tertiary and Quaternary Structures

Fibrous

Polypeptide chains in long strands or sheets

Globins

Polypeptide chains in a spherical or globular shape

click to edit

support, shape, external protection

Insoluble in water

alpha-keratin

High concentration of hydrophobic amino acid residues both in interior of protein and on surface

hair, wool, claws, nails, hooves, much of outer layer of skin

Right handed alpha helix

Two strands wrapped around each other to form a super twisted coiled coil

Rich in hydrophobic residues, because the part where the two helices touch is made up of these

Cross links stabilizing quaternary structure are disulfide bonds

Hair can be curled when reduced---breaking disulfide bonds, then reoxidized, reforming disulfide bonds

Silk

B sheets--rich in gly and ala residues

Collagen

connective tissue like tendons, cartilage, cornea of eye

Unique secondary structure

coiled coil, but one with three separate polypeptides, called alpha chains, twisted around one another

Usually in Pro-X-Y conformation, where X is usually Pro and Y is usually 4-Hyp. in the absence of vitamin C, cells can't hydroxylate at the Y positions