In: Biology
What is the basic monomeric unit of a protein? How many different units are there? How are they similar and how are they different?
Proteins are complex macromolecules which are made up of several aminoacids. Each aminoacid is called a monomer. These monomers attached with one another to form a polymer which is a protein.
There are several hundreds of aminoacids are present in the nature. But 20 aminoacids were present in the bodies of organisms according to genetic code. These 20 aminoacids combine in different configurations to form several proteins. Aminoacids attached to one another by peptide bond.
All aminoacids are same with backbone which is made up of an amino group(-NH2) and a carboxyl group(-COOH). The different amino acids differ from different side chain groups(R-group).
The examples were shown in the following picture:-