Amide Bond Formation

1
Amide Bond Formation

• Amide bonds form upon reaction of carboxylic
  acids with ammonia, primary amines or secondary
  amines.
• When amide bonds form between amino acids we call
  it a peptide bond.

2
Amino Acids
3
Proteins

• Proteins are polymers of amino acid monomers held
  together by peptide bonds.
• Roles of proteins
• Gene expression is due to proteins
• Almost all enzymes are proteins
• Many hormones are proteins or peptides
• Proteins form structural tissue
• Storage and transportation of many molecules is
  possible due to proteins (think back to passive
  transport of hydrophilic molecules in and out of
  cells)
• The immune system uses proteins to identify and
  attack foreign invaders such as bacteria
• Structure of proteins
• Primary Structure refers to the sequence of
  amino acids in a protein chain held together by
  amide bonds (peptide bonds)
• Secondary Structure refers to the regular and
  repeating spatial organization of neighboring
  segments of protein chains (either the
  alpha-helix or the beta-sheet).