Implications of Primary Structure
Primary Structure Determines All Higher
Levels of Structure
* The linear polypeptide chain folds in a particular
arrangement, giving a 3D structure.
* Proteins unfolded in vitro fold back
to their original ("native")
state.
(when solution conditions are returned to those in which the
folded protein exists)
* All the information for the native fold
- contained within the primary structure:
proteins are self-folding.
(although in vivo, polypeptide folding is often assisted by additional
molecules known as molecular
chaperones)