In: Biology
Is this true or false? The collagen structure is a bundle of three left handed alpha helices in a right handed supercoil.
how do 3 left handed make a right handed?
Ans. This statement is True
This fibrous, structural protein comprises a right handed bundle of three parallel, and left-handed polyproline II-type helices. Much progress has been made in elucidating structure of collagen triple helices and the physicochemical basis for their stability.Collegen consists of triple helix made of repetitious amino acid sequence glycine - X - Y, where X and Y are frequently proline or hydroxyproline.
how do 3 left handed make a right handed?
Due to the high abundance of glycine and proline contents, collagen fails to form a regular alpha helix and β-sheet structure. Three left handed halicle strand twist to form a right handed triple helix.Collagen consist of a three chains of polypeptide and each of them twisted in left-handed helix. All Three chains of collagen aggregate by covalent bonds and twist into a right-handed super-helix, forming the basic collagen unit.