Enzymes

Question 1

Effector

Answer 1

In biochemistry, an effector molecule is usually a small molecule that selectively binds to a protein and regulates its biological activity

Question 2

Allosteric effectors

Answer 2

allosteric regulation is the regulation of an enzyme or other protein by binding an effectormolecule at the protein’s allosteric site (that is, a site other than the protein’s active site). Allosteric sites allow effectors to bind to the protein, often resulting in a conformational change or other change in the effectiveness of the enzyme. Effectors that enhance the protein’s activity are referred to as allosteric activators, whereas those that decrease the protein’s activity are called allosteric inhibitors.

Allosteric regulations are a natural example of control loops, such as feedback from downstream products or feedforward from upstream substrates. Long-range allostery is especially important in cell signaling

Question 3

Transcription and Translation

(upstream vs downstream)

Answer 3

Transcription and translation of DNA and mRNA, respectively, have their direction defined by the newly synthesized strand, that is, in downstream direction (5’ → 3’). However, it is in the upstream direction (3’ → 5’) for the copied template strand.

(3’ end is downstream, and 5’ end is upstream)