What is a Peptide?
Peptides are short chains of amino acids linked by peptide bonds. Typically, peptides contain less than 50 amino acids. Anything larger is considered a protein.
Peptides serve many important biological functions. For example:
- Some peptides act as chemical messengers that help cells communicate. These messenger peptides are also called hormones. For instance, insulin is a peptide hormone that helps regulate blood sugar levels.
- Other peptides play key roles in the immune system. Immunopeptides help the body recognize foreign invaders like bacteria and mount an immune response.
- Bioactive peptides influence different processes in the body like blood pressure, antioxident activity, cholesterol and more. They are commonly found in foods like milk, eggs, meat, and plant sources.
So, in summary:
What are peptides?
- Short chains of amino acids, usually less than 50 units
- Serve as messenger molecules, hormones, immune modulators, etc.
What do they do?
- Chemical messaging - insulin, hormones
- Immunity - immunopeptides
- Bioactivity - influence blood pressure, cholesterol, etc.
Some key differences between peptides and proteins:
- Size - peptides are shorter
- Structure - peptides have a simpler, more flexible structure
- Function - proteins have more complex, specialized functions compared to peptides
Fun fact: The venom produced by bees, snakes, spiders, etc., contains various toxic peptides! The cone snail makes peptides that can treat pain.
So, in nature, peptides exhibit immense chemical diversity and use this to influence many biological processes - both as toxins and therapies! Scientists are now harnessing the pharmaceutical potential of peptides for drug development and biomedicine.
I hope this gives you a good overview of what peptides are! Let Invigorate Medical know if you need any clarification or have additional questions.