Allostery
Metabolism is about control
High product levels are bad in most biological systems. Here, we use buildup of glycerol-6-phosphate to compare two types of product inhibition: allostery and product/competitive inhibition.
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This 30-minute activity has students interact with a movable version of the human hexokinase isoform from the brain.
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Location of allosteric or competitive binding sites relative to the active site
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Allosteric changes to an active site structure
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Product inhibition by allostery and competition
Where's the data?
Want to know if the activity is effective? We did too. Check out our peer-reviewed publication here.
The Models
The Activity
We recommend a printed version only for small classes and a combination of printed and interactive online activity for large classes.
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This 30-minute activity is designed to replace a lecture-style class on protein structure. In our class of >110 students, it was completed in groups of three.
Activity learning goals:
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Location of allosteric or competitive binding sites relative to the active site
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Allosteric changes to an active site structure
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Product inhibition by allostery and competition
Access Online Interactive Activity
Looking for Assessment Questions?
Or activity answer keys? Our data suggests that students will perform better on typical biochemistry test questions regarding protein structure after doing this activity. However, Dr. Roston is happy to provide assessment questions and answer keys.
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