Sublime

to enter the cell and expelling others. Other proteins act as signaling molecules, receiving information from the outside world and activating internal processes accordingly. Still others are antibodies, which protect us from foreign invaders such as viruses. In short, proteins are spectacularly diverse.

Beyond its role in building muscle, protein may have beneficial effects on our metabolism. One study found that giving elderly people supplements containing essential amino acids (that is, mimicking some effects of increasing dietary protein) lowered their levels of liver fat and circulating triglycerides.

It's crucial to recognize that muscle protein is particularly rich in the amino acids, tryptophan and cysteine. When these amino acids are released from our tissues, they exhibit significant anti-metabolic effects (Functional Performance Systems, 2024a; Thyroid Patient Advocacy, 2024).

But a cell is not merely a gene-decoding machine. Having unpacked the code by synthesizing a select set of proteins that is encoded in its genes, a cell becomes an integrating machine. A cell uses this set of proteins (and the biochemical products made by proteins) in conjunction with one another to start coordinating its function, its behavior (mo

Most of the cells of the body make proteins, and genes are the way we make them. We express particular genes via certain cells making particular proteins.