essential amino acids (methionine) biosynthesis ?

[CABC/W95]

George M. Carter (gmc0 at ix.netcom.com) wrote:
: Peter.Kulmburg at AUG.UKL.UNI-FREIBURG.DE
: (kulmburg at aug.ukl.uni-freiburg.de) wrote:


: Obviously, there is more to amino acid production than just enzymes
: (since various amino acids can be converted to others).  Such a
: differential analysis of pathways of amino acid production would be
: interesting to see but beyond the scope of a quick email. Does anyone
: here have good references for this kind of thing?  And what is the
: rationale for wanting to know "what's missing" (so to speak) from
: humans that cannot synthesize essential aa's?

>>>>>>Essentially, though, every anabolic and catabolic pathway in the 
body is regulated by enzymes and coenzymes! The only way a molecule can 
be transformed into another (eg: one amino acid to another) is through 
the action of a specific enzyme and its cofactor. Therefore, what is 
either missing or defective is probably an enzyme for that particular 
reaction. Genetic predisposition can render faulty coding for the primary 
polypep. sequence causing either reduced, enhanced, or no activity.
	I've forgotten what the original question was but I'll gladly 
check my biochem. books for any info. you need.
						NM