PROTENIS
(STRUCTURE, FUNCTION, SOURCE, NUTRITION AL VALUE)
PROTEINS
•The word "protein" by derivation means that which is of first importance.
•They are of the greatest importance in human nutrition.
•Proteins are complex organic nitrogenous compounds.
•They are composed of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen and sulphur in
varying amounts. Some proteins also contain phosphorus and iron and
occasionally other elements.
•Proteins differ from carbohydrates and fats in that they contain nitrogen, this
usually amounts to about 16 per cent.
•Proteins constitute about 20 per cent of the body weight in an adult.
ESSENTIAL AMINO ACIDS
•Proteins are made up of smaller units, called amino acids.
•Some 20 amino acids are stated to be needed by the human body
•Out of which 8 are called "essential" because the body cannot synthesize them
in amounts corresponding to its needs, and therefore, they must be obtained
from dietary proteins.
•They are: leucine, isoleucine, lysine, methionine, phenylalanine, threonine,
valine, tryptophan and histidine.
•Both essential and non-essential amino acids are needed for synthesis of tissue
proteins.
•The EAA must be supplied through diet, whereas the NEAA can be synthesized
by the body provided other building blocks are present.
•Some of the essential amino acids have important biological functions,
•e.g., formation of niacin from tryptophan;
•the action of methionine as a donor of methyl groups for the synthesis of
choline, folates and nucleic acids.
•cystine and tyrosine are essential for premature babies.
•New tissues cannot be formed unless all the essential amino acids (EAA) are
present in the diet.
BIOLOGICALLY COMPLETE PROTEIN
•A protein is said to be "biologically complete" if it contains all the EAA in
amounts corresponding to human needs.
•When one or more of the EAA are lacking, the protein is said to be "biologically
incomplete".
•The quality of dietary protein is closely related to its pattern of amino acids.
•From the nutritional standpoint, animal proteins are rated superior to vegetable
proteins because they are "biologically complete.
•For example milk and egg proteins have a pattern of amino acids considered
most suitable for humans.
FUNCTIONS OF PROTEIN
•Proteins are needed by the body for
(a) body building. - this component is small compared with the maintenance
component, except in the very young child and infant.
(b) repair and maintenance of body tissues;
(c) maintenance. of osmotic pressure so maintain fluid balance in the body;
(d) synthesis of certain substances. like antibodies, plasma proteins, hemoglobin,
enzymes, hormones and coagulation factors.
(e) Proteins are connected with the immune mechanism of the body.
(f) The cell mediated immune response and the bactericidal activity of leucocyte
have been found to be lowered in severe forms of protein energy malnutrition.
(g) Proteins can also supply energy (4 kcalper one gram) when the calorie intake
is inadequate, but this is not their primary function. It is considered wasteful if
proteins were used for such a purpose.
SOURCES OF PROTEIN
Humans obtain protein from two main dietary sources
(a) ANIMAL SOURCES: Proteins of animal (b) VEGETABLE SOURCES: Vegetable
origin are found in milk, meat, eggs, proteins are found in pulses (legumes),
cheese, fish and fowl. cereals, beans, nuts, oil-seed cakes, etc.
•These proteins. contain all the essential •They are poor in EAA.
amino acids (EAA) in adequate amounts.
•In developing countries such as India,
•Egg proteins are considered to be the best cereals and pulses are the main sources of
among food proteins because of their high dietary protein because they are cheap,
biological value and digestibility. They are easily available and consumed in bulk.
used in in nutrition studies as a "reference
protein".
SUPPLEMENTRY ACTION OF PROTEINS
•Man derives protein not from a single source, but from a variety of food
sources, animal and vegetable.
•Cereal proteins are deficient in lysine and threonine; and pulse proteins in
methionine. These are known as "limiting" amino acids.
•When two or more of vegetarian foods are eaten together (as for example, rice-
dal combination in India) their proteins supplement one another and provide a
protein comparable to animal protein in respect of EAA.
•Thus with proper planning, it is possible for a vegetarian to obtain a high grade
protein, at low cost, from mixed diets of cereals, pulses and vegetables.
•This is known as supplementary action of proteins, and is the basis of
counselling people to eat mixed diets.
DAILY REQUIRMENTS OF PROTEIN
•It is customary to express protein requirements in terms of body weight.
•The Indian Council of Medical Research in 2020 recommended 0.83 g protein/kg
body weight per day as a safe intake for an Indian adult, assuming a median
obligatory nitrogen loss of 48 mg/kg body weight.
PROTEIN METABOLISM
There are three features of protein metabolism:
(a) since proteins are not stored in the human body in the way that energy is
stored in adipose tissue, they have to be replaced every day;
(b) the body proteins are constantly being broken down into their constituent
amino acids and then reused for protein synthesis. The rates of turnover vary
from tissue to tissue. The reutilization of amino acids is a major contributory
factor to the economy of protein metabolism The overall rate of turnover in
adult man is equivalent to replacement between 1-2 per cent of body protein
each day
(c) it is not only the amount of protein that is maintained constant, but also the
pattern of specific protein in body. For maximum utilization of dietary proteins,
the calorie intake should be adequate.
EVALUATION OF PROTEIN
•A knowledge of the amino acid content of protein is not sufficient for the
evaluation of protein quality. Information is also required about the digestibility
and suitability to meet the protein needs of the body.
•The parameters used for such an evaluation include the estimation of the
biological value, digestibility coefficient, protein efficiency ratio and net protein
utilization.
•The net protein utilization (NPU) is considered of more practical value because it
is the product of biological value and digestibility coefficient divided by 100.
•In exact terms, it is the "proportion of ingested protein that is retained in the
body under specified conditions for the maintenance and/or growth of the
tissues".
