4. State the role of pancreatic juice in digestion of proteins.
Pancreatic juice contains a variety of inactive enzymes such as trypsinogen, chymotrypsinogen, and carboxypeptidases. These enzymes play an important role in the digestion of proteins.
Physiology of protein-digestion
The enzyme enterokinase is secreted by the intestinal mucosa. It activates trypsinogen into trypsin.
TrypsinogenEnterokinase→Trypsin+Inactive peptide
Trypsin then activates the other enzymes of pancreatic juice such as chymotrypsinogen
and carboxypeptidase.
Chymotrypsinogen is a milk-coagulating enzyme that converts proteins into peptides.
Chymotorypsinogen(Inactive)Trypsin→Chymotrypsin(Active)
ProteinsChymotrypsin→Peptides
Carboxypeptidase acts on the carboxyl end of the peptide chain and helps release the last amino acids. Hence, it helps in the digestion of proteins.
PeptidesCarboxypeptidase→Smaller peptide chain+Amino acids
Thus, in short, we can say that the partially-hydrolysed proteins present in the chyme are acted upon by various proteolytic enzymes of the pancreatic juice for their complete digestion.
Proteins, peptonesTrypsin/Chymotrypsin→CarboxypeptidaseDipeptides and proteases
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