What is Biochemistry? A taster for Unit 13

We shall shortly begin Unit 13, entitled Biochemistry and Biochemical Techniques. I thought it would be useful to define the subject areas and perhaps the best place to begin with is the Biochemical Society, founded in 1911 and influenced heavily by the first Department of Biochemistry established in Liverpool under the leadership of the first Johnston Chair of Biochemistry, Professor Benjamin Moore FRS. Sure enough, the website is bristling with exciting information via many links, but no definition! I then looked at the journals that specialize in Biochemistry. The Biochemical Journal, founded in 1906, alas, no joy there either! I wondered if Biochemistry, the equivalent US journal might help us out. Well, a little:

Biochemistry publishes research from the arena where biochemistry, biophysical chemistry, and molecular biology meet. The journal covers structure, function, and regulation of biologically active molecules; gene structure & expression; biochemical mechanisms; protein biosynthesis; protein folding; global protein analysis and function; membrane structure-function relationships; biochemical methods; bioenergetics; bioinformatics, and immunochemistry.

But, for me this is too vague and "understandably" inclusive of related fields, but it doesn't give me a concise definition, rather the scope of that particular learned journal. The Journal of Biological Chemistry is another famous American journal that has published many landmark papers in Biochemistry over the last one hundred years (110 to be precise!). It's mission is defined on their web site as:

The Journal of Biological Chemistry publishes papers based on original research that are judged to make a novel and important contribution to understanding the molecular and cellular basis of biological processes.

So, some themes are emerging, but no precise definition. The journal Biochemistry published since 1936 (as Biokhimiya) from Moscow is similarly vague, as is the Japanese Journal of Biochemistry, launched in the 1920s by the Japanese Biochemical Society.

So inevitably, I went to Wikipedia! here I find the following definition:

"Biochemistry, sometimes called biological chemistry, is the study of chemical processes within and relating to living organisms. By controlling information flow through biochemical signalling and the flow of chemical energy through metabolism, biochemical processes give rise to the complexity of life. Over the last 40 years, biochemistry has become so successful at explaining living processes that now almost all areas of the life sciences from botany to medicine are engaged in biochemical research.Today, the main focus of pure biochemistry is in understanding how biological molecules give rise to the processes that occur within living cells, which in turn relates greatly to the study and understanding of whole organisms."

And it's pretty good! I might have written it a little differently, but the essence is there. Let's see what the BTEC Unit 13 expects of us:

"The aim of this unit is to develop the learners knowledge and techniques needed for the study of biochemistry. Learners will investigate biological molecules, enzymes, metabolic pathways and the structure of proteins."

This was the primary of focus of Biochemistry and Biochemists from the late 19th century (the "Father of Biochemistry", Otto Warburg is pictured above: note the similarities with the Innovation Labs) until the mid 1960s. Of course questions remain unresolved in some of these areas today, but the body of knowledge accumulated comes largely from this period. And 100 years of Biochemistry is a lot to capture in one Unit! However, we are going to make a start!

Let me begin with a plan, that fits the aims:

1. Biomolecules. We shall consider the range of molecules found in living organisms, the conservation of such molecular species between all forms of life (as well as some areas of specialisation) and the chemistry and physics associated with their biological roles.

2. Enzymes. What are they, what do they do and what do they look like? We will use glutamate dehydrogenase as our model enzyme and investigate its catalytic properties, its structure and mechanism, together with the influence of factors such as heat, ionic strength, pH and inhibitors on its activity. We shall also compare GDHs from bacteria (including C.difficile), fungi, plants and animals, with a particular focus on mammalian forms of the enzyme. We shall develop our understanding through a series of lab sessions, culminating in the determination of the Vmax and Km of the enzyme from Clostridium symbiosum and a demonstration of how these parameters are affected by a competitive inhibitor.

3. Metabolic pathways. The pioneering work of Nobel Laureates including Otto Warburg and Hans Krebs laid the foundations for our understanding of contemporary metabolism. This is essential for understanding nutrition and human (as well as all organisms) physiology in health and disease. The flux of metabolites through glycolysis, beta oxidation and the Krebs Cycle, leads ultimately to the generation of ATP via the organised electron transfer chain in the mitochondrial membrane of eukaryotes. The enzyme glutamate dehydrogenase provides a link to the biosynthesis of proteins and together we shall assemble a map that provides us with a detailed understanding of the role of metabolic pathways, enzymes and the consequences of environmental stimuli and nutritional status. We shall finally contextualise our understanding  of metabolism in the contemporary field of Systems Biology.

4. The structure of proteins. The phrase "structure and function" fills the pages of most Biochemistry text books. We shall use examples such as antibodies, enzymes and gene activators (RHS) and repressors, to explore this topic. This will be intimately linked to my Molecule of the Month Blogs and we shall host academics who have solved structures of key proteins to illustrate the importance of this area of Biochemistry.

I hope this has whetted your appetite for more!