Human Biochemistry and Disease (eBook)

Front cover 1
Human Biochemistry and Disease 4
Copyright page 5
Table of contents 6
Preface 14
Chapter 1 Introduction and General Considerations 18
Introduction 18
Integration of Biochemistry with Clinical Medicine 19
General Considerations 19
Further Reading 49
Chapter 2 Proteins 50
Prion Disease: A Fatal Protein Conformation 50
Amino Acids 56
Proteins 71
Further Reading 109
Chapter 3 Enzymes 110
Clinical Enzymology in Diagnosis of Disease 110
Enzymes Are Catalytic Proteins 113
Kinetics 114
Classification 124
Coenzymes 129
Prosthetic Groups 136
Drugs and Enzymes 142
Further Reading 146
Chapter 4 Carbohydrates 148
Diabetes: A Prevalent Disease That Disrupts Glucose Utilization 148
Simple Sugars 163
Starch 170
Glycogen 171
Is Type 2 Diabetes a Disease of Protein Aggregation? 187
Use of Glucose for Energy 190
Glycerol Can Be Converted to Glucose 199
Glycoproteins 199
Blood Group Proteins 202
Lactose Intolerance 205
Glycobiology 205
Further Reading 205
Chapter 5 Lipids 206
Hypercholesterolemia: A Disease in Which Serum Cholesterol Is Not Properly Imported at the Cellular Level 206
Fatty Acids and Fat 215
Fatty Acid Oxidation 219
Activation and Transport of Fatty Acids into Mitochondria 223
Lipid Metabolism and Hormonal Control 224
Phospholipids 237
Glycosphingolipids 243
Lipoproteins 250
Lipid Anchoring of Proteins to Membranes 253
Further Reading 255
Chapter 6 Nucleic Acids and Molecular Genetics 256
Huntington’s Disease: A Trinucleotide Repeat Mutation 256
Purines and Pyrimidines 261
Biosynthesis of Deoxyribonucleic Acids 305
Functional Genomics 329
Ribonucleic Acids 333
Further Reading 339
Chapter 7 Transcription 340
Asbestosis: A Disease of Aberrant Transcription 340
Transcription Factors and Transcription Complex 346
Coactivators and Corepressors 354
The Glucocorticoid Receptor as a Model Transcription Factor 366
Chromatin 374
Further Reading 380
Chapter 8 Polypeptide Hormones 382
Panhypopituitarism: A Malfunctionof the Hypothalamus–Pituitary–End Organ Axis 382
Humoral Mechanism 384
Posterior Pituitary 397
Actions of Releasing Hormones and Anterior Pituitary Hormones 404
Gonadotropins 423
Thyrotropin 434
Prolactin 447
Gastrointestinal Hormones 452
Further Reading 461
Chapter 9 Steroid Hormones 462
Stress: A State That Can Have Serious Pathological Consequences 462
Adrenal Cortex 469
Steroid Hormone Structures 493
Unliganded Forms of Receptors and Mechanism of Activation 495
Ligands and Receptor Conformation: The Sex Hormones 500
Peroxisome Proliferators and Orphan Receptors 505
Programmed Cell Death (Apoptosis) Induced by Glucocorticoids 508
Further Reading 513
Chapter 10 Metabolism 514
Hyperammonemia and Disruptions of the Urea Cycle 514
The Urea Cycle 516
Nitrogen Flow, Amino, and Amide Group Transfers in Amino Acid Metabolism 520
Transamination 525
Transamidation 529
Deamination 530
Amino Acid Oxidation 531
Amino Acid Decarboxylation 533
Metabolism of Specific Amino Acids to Key Substances 534
Catabolism of Amino Acids 563
Metabolism of Lipids 571
Glucagon 576
Fatty Acid Degradation 577
Fat as Storage Energy 578
Lipid and Carbohydrate Metabolism Are Jointly Regulated 582
Steroid Hormone Metabolism 583
Nucleic Acid Metabolism 587
DNA Damage and Repair 590
Cell Death 592
Carbohydrate Metabolism 594
Regulation of Blood Glucose Level 598
Overview 602
Further Reading 603
Chapter 11 Growth Factors and Cytokines 604
New Approaches to Ovarian Cancer, Such as the Action of TRAIL (TNF-Related Apoptosis-Inducing Ligand) Might Form the Basis of a Treatment 604
TNF Superfamily 611
Growth Factors 617
Interleukins 671
Further Reading 700
Chapter 12 Membrane Transport 702
Cystic Fibrosis: A Genetic Disease Involving Aberrant Ion Transport 702
Types of Membrane Transport 712
Energy-Requiring Transport: Active Transport 719
Simple and Coupled Transporters 721
Ions and Gradients 723
How Do Magnesium and Other Divalent Ions Enter Cells? 730
Proton (H+ ) Transport 731
Amino Acid Transporters 737
Fatty Acid Uptake 740
Sodium Conductance and Voltage-Gated Sodium Channels 746
Multidrug Resistance Channel (MDR) of the ABC Transporter Superfamily 749
Blood-Brain Barrier 751
Further Reading 754
Chapter 13 Dietary Metals, Iron, Micronutrients, and Nutrition 756
Iron-Deficiency Anemia 756
Ingestion and Uptake of Iron 760
Heme Synthesis 770
Formation of Hemoglobin 777
Dietary Metals 781
Vitamins 818
The Diet 866
Herbs and Nutraceuticals 869
Further Reading 869
Chapter 14 Blood and Lymphatic System 870
Deep Vein Thrombosis: A Major Health Problem 870
The Blood-Clotting Mechanism 881
Blood 888
Lymphatic System 911
Further Reading 915
Chapter 15 Immunobiochemistry 916
The Surveillance System and Cancer 916
Types of Antibodies 927
Opsonization 934
Antibody Formation 934
Autoimmunity 937
Complement System 950
Properdin 966
C-Reactive Protein 968
Further Reading 970
Chapter 16 Neurobiochemistry 972
Pain: A Constant Health Problem 972
Substance P 979
Opioids and Morphine 985
Anandamide 991
Excitatory Amino Acids 1005
The Classical Neurotransmitters 1020
Catecholamines and Monoamines 1044
Characteristics of the Brain 1061
Further Reading 1063
Chapter 17 Microbial Biochemistry 1064
AIDS: A Deadly Viral Disease 1064
Other Viruses of Current Interest 1085
Bacteriophage 1106
A Bacterial Cell, E. coli 1124
Further Reading 1168
Appendices 1170
Appendix 1 Abbreviations of the Common Amino Acids 1170
Appendix 2 The Genetic Code 1172
Base Pairing 1172
Appendix 3 Weights and Measures 1174
Glossary 1176
Index 1194