General reaction of amino acid metabolism deamination
Answers
Proteins are the most abundant organic compounds and constitute a major part of the body dry weight (10-12 kg in adults). They perform a wide variety of static (structural) and dynamic (enzymes, hormones, clotting factors, receptors etc.) functions.
About half of the body protein (predominantly collagen) is present in the supportive tissue (skeleton and connective) while the other half is intracellular.
The proteins on degradation (proteolysis) release individual amino acids. Amino acids are not just the structural components of proteins. Each of the 20 naturally occurring amino acids undergoes its own metabolism and performs specific functions. Some of the amino acids also serve as precursors for the synthesis of many biologically important compounds (e.g. melanin, serotonin, creatine etc.), Protein metabolism is more appropriately learnt as metabolism of amino acids.