Week 4 HW: Principles and Practices

How many molecules of amino acids do you take with a piece of 500 grams of meat? (on average an amino acid is ~100 Daltons)
Why do humans eat beef but do not become a cow, eat fish but do not become fish?
Why are there only 20 natural amino acids?
Can you make other non-natural amino acids? Design some new amino acids.
Where did amino acids come from before enzymes that make them, and before life started?
If you make an α-helix using D-amino acids, what handedness (right or left) would you expect?
Can you discover additional helices in proteins?
Why are most molecular helices right-handed?
Why do β-sheets tend to aggregate?
What is the driving force for β-sheet aggregation?
Why do many amyloid diseases form β-sheets?
Can you use amyloid β-sheets as materials?
Design a β-sheet motif that forms a well-ordered structure.