Superoxide dysmutase is one popular enzyme which cannot be delivered by oral intake to the intercellular sites where it does its useful things. Ingested proteins tend to get digested, losing their information as shape and function, or, if they are not digested, tend to cause allergic reactions rather than functioning normally. The next development of molecular engineering will be vehicles to deliver enzymes to intracellular sites where they will be useful. Delivery vehicles may be physical structures or carrier molecules that protect the enzymes while directing them through the GIT, circulation, and filtering systems like the liver and lungs. Alphabet Of Life Amino acids are the alphabet characters of body proteins.
Proteins are chains of amino acids linked together like beads on a necklace.
A total of 9 amino acids are considered essential, while another 11 or so can be synthesized from the essential amino acids. There are other amino acids which appear in nature that are not included in protein structure. These odd amino acids appear especially in plants, where they may have roles as insect deterrents. The programs which determine us are coded in the DNA molecules housed in the nucleus of every cell. A single character is a base pair which is visualized as the rung on a ladder, twisted into a helix.