Biochemistry of Amino Acids - A. Majster 1961

General Biochemistry and Physiology of Amino Acid Metabolism
Synthesis of Peptide Bonds
General Remarks

"One of the most striking properties of living organisms is the unerring precision with which they produce specific tissue components from the variable mixture of Amino Acids circulating in the Blood." Rose (1938).

The reaction resulting in The formation of Proteins from Amino acids can arguably be considered the most important of all metabolic reactions involving amino acids. This is evidenced by the presence of most Naturally Occurring Amino Acids in proteins, as well as an overwhelming body of data concerning the Biological Role of proteins themselves. Meanwhile, very little is known about The Mechanism of Protein Synthesis carried out by almost all living Cells. Experiments on various animal species using artificial diets have clearly demonstrated that all necessary amino acids must be present for protein synthesis to occur. This circumstance, coupled with a lack of information regarding the Amino Acid Sequence in peptide chains and their spatial arrangement within proteins, seriously hampers further progress. Nevertheless, A number of ingenious and sophisticated approaches to this problem have expanded our knowledge of peptide bond synthesis; some of these approaches are discussed below.