Q. What is the significance of proteins for living beings?
Proteins play an essential role in nearly all biological processes. Due to their variety they can suppose many diverse configurations and they can play varied roles in cells and tissues.
Some protein functions are noteworthy, the structural function (cytoskeleton proteins, cell membrane proteins, proteins of the connective tissue), the enzymatic function (enzymes are proteins), the energy storage function (proteins can be degraded into acetyl-CoA and "cycle" the Krebs cycle), the transportation function (membrane channels, respiratory pigments) , the osmotic regulation function (albumin), the immune protection function (antibodies), the movement function (contractile proteins), the endocrine integration function (hormones) and the informative function (membrane receptors, intracellular signalers). There are in addition many proteins whose biological functions are not yet known.