Protein Synthesis Quotes

An active replicator is any replicator whose nature has some influence over its probability of being copied. For example a DNA molecule, via protein synthesis, exerts phenotypic effects which influence whether it is copied: this is what natural selection is all about.

Biochemist David Goodsell describes the problem, “The key molecular process that makes modern life possible is protein synthesis, since proteins are used in nearly every aspect of living. The synthesis of proteins requires a tightly integrated sequence of reactions, most of which are themselves performed by proteins.”41 Or as Jacques Monod noted in 1971: “The code is meaningless unless translated. The modern cell’s translating machinery consists of at least fifty macromolecular components which are themselves coded in DNA: the code cannot be translated otherwise than by products of

Our memories are in part reconstructions. Whenever we retrieve a memory, the brain rewrites it a bit, updating the past according to our present concerns and understanding. At the cellular level, LeDoux explains, retrieving a memory means it will be “reconsolidated,” slightly altered chemically by a new protein synthesis that will help store it anew after being updated.40 Thus each time we bring a memory to mind, we adjust its very chemistry: the next time we retrieve it, that memory will come up as we last modified it. The specifics of the new consolidation depend on what we learn as we recall it. If we merely have a flare-up of the same fear, we deepen our fearfulness. But the high road can bring reason to the low. If at the time of the fear we tell ourselves something that eases its grip, then the same memory becomes reencoded with less power over us. Gradually, we can bring the once-feared memory to mind without feeling the rush of distress all over again. In such a case, says LeDoux, the cells in our amygdala reprogram so that we lose the original fear conditioning.41 One goal of therapy, then, can be seen as gradually altering the neurons for learned fear.

The distribution of amino acids is not the same as in animal protein. In particular, plant protein has less of the essential amino acids methionine, lysine, and tryptophan, potentially leading to reduced protein synthesis. Taken together, these two factors tell us that the overall quality of protein derived from plants is significantly lower than that from animal products.

There is a significant hereditary contribution to ADD but I do not believe any genetic factor is decisive in the emergence of ADD traits in any child. Genes are codes for the synthesis of the proteins that give a particular cell its characteristic structure and function. They are, as it were, alive and dynamic architectural and mechanical plans. Whether the plan becomes realized depends on far more than the gene itself. It is determined, for the most part, by the environment. To put it differently, genes carry potentials inherent in the cells of a given organism. Which of multiple potentials become expressed biologically is a question of life circumstances. Were we to adopt the medical model — only temporarily, for the sake of argument — a genetic explanation by itself would still be unsuitable. Medical conditions for which genetic inheritance are fully or even mostly responsible, such as muscular dystrophy, are rare. “Few diseases are purely genetic,” says Michael Hayden, a geneticist at the University of British Columbia and a world-renowned researcher into Huntington’s disease. “The most we can say is that some diseases are strongly genetic.” Huntington’s is a fatal degeneration of the nervous system based on a single gene that, if inherited, will almost invariably cause the disease. But not always. Dr. Hayden mentions cases of persons with the gene who live into ripe old age without any signs of the disease itself. “Even in Huntington’s, there must be some protective factor in the environment,” Dr. Hayden says.

At dinner, the conversation lurched between the molecular breakdown of aromatic acids (Calvin), to what movie might be playing (Deirdre), to the synthesis of nonreactive proteins (Calvin), to whether or not he liked to dance (Deirdre), to look at the time, it was already eight thirty p.m. and he had to row in the morning so he would be taking her straight home (Calvin).

At dinner, the conversation lurched between the molecular breakdown of aromatic acids (Calvin), to what movie might be playing (Deirdre), to the synthesis of nonreactive proteins (Calvin), to whether or not he liked to dance (Deirdre), to look at the time, it was already eight thirty p.m. and he had to row in the morning so he would be taking her straight home (Calvin).

Dose response studies indicate a linear increase in skeletal muscle protein synthesis with ingestion of high quality protein up to about 20-25 grams per meal[127]. With protein intakes twice this amount, there is a marked increase in protein oxidation with no further increase in protein synthesis. When looked at over the course of a day, there is no credible evidence that protein intakes above 2.5 g/kg body weight lead to greater nitrogen balance or accumulation of lean tissue. Another reason to avoid eating too much protein is that it has a modest insulin stimulating effect that reduces ketone production. While this effect is much less gram-for-gram than carbohydrates, higher protein intakes reduce one’s keto-adaptation and thus the metabolic benefits of the diet.

The cloning of human genes allowed scientists to manufacture proteins-and the synthesis of proteins opened the possibility of targeting the millions of biochemical reactions in the human body. Proteins made it possible for chemists to intervene on previously impenetrable aspects of our physiology. The use of recombinant DNA to produce proteins thus marked a transition not just between one gene and one medicine, but between genes and a novel universe of drugs.

Fourth, within the session, the learning should be spaced out. It is well known that massed training is much less effective than spaced training in creating enduring memories,74 including implicit memories of extinction.75 The explanation at the molecular level involves CREB, the transcription factor that initiates gene expression and protein synthesis in the conversion of short-term to long-term memory.76 Massed training depletes CREB, and once used up about sixty minutes of recovery is needed to replenish the supply, so additional training within that period only interferes with the resupply process.77 It has been shown that CREB-dependent protein synthesis in the PFCVM78 and amygdala79 is required for the long-term retention of extinction. So if one is going to do twenty-five exposures, they should be done in blocks of five, with breaks between, rather than all twenty-five at once. Temporal spacing, in short, could make the effects of extinction and exposure more persistent.

In the fall of 2000 I started getting calls and emails from people asking me to erase their memories. Karim Nader, Glenn Schafe, and I had recently published a paper in the journal Nature with a rather technical title, “Fear Memories Require Protein Synthesis in the Lateral Amygdala for Reconsolidation after Retrieval.”3 In this study we conditioned rats with a tone and shock and then later presented them with the tone alone after a drug that blocks protein synthesis had been infused in the lateral amygdala (LA), a key area of the amygdala where the tone-shock association is stored. When tested the following day, or at any time afterward, the rats behaved as though they had never been conditioned. The procedure, in other words, seemed to erase the memory that the tone was a signal of danger. Toward the end of the short piece, we proposed that it might be possible to use a technique like this (but without having to inject a drug directly into the amygdala) to dampen traumatic memory in people with PTSD.

Human DNA is a ladder a billion nucleotides long. Most possible combinations of nucleotides are nonsense; they would cause the synthesis of proteins that perform no useful function. Only an extremely limited number of nucleic acid molecules are any good for lifeforms as complicated as we. Even so, the number of useful ways of putting nucleic acids together is stupefyingly large- probably far greater than the total number of electrons and protons in the universe. Accordingly, the number of possible individual human beings is vastly greater than the number that have ever lived: the untapped potential of the human species is immense. There must be ways of putting nucleic acids together that will function far better- by any criterion we choose- than any human being who has ever lived. p26

If the information coded in DNA were written down, it would make a giant library consisting of an estimated 900 volumes of encyclopedias consisting of 500 pages each. A very interesting dilemma emerges at this point: DNA can replicate itself only with the help of some specialized proteins (enzymes). However, the synthesis of these enzymes can be realized only by the information coded in DNA. As they both depend on each other, they have to exist at the same time for replication. This brings the scenario that life originated by itself to a deadlock. Prof. Leslie Orgel, an evolutionist of repute from the University of San Diego, California, confesses this fact in the September 1994 issue of the Scientific American magazine: It is extremely improbable that proteins and nucleic acids, both of which are structurally complex, arose spontaneously in the same place at the same time. Yet it also seems impossible to have one without the other. And so, at first glance, one might have to conclude that life could never, in fact, have originated by chemical means.6 No doubt, if it is impossible for life to have originated from natural causes, then it has to be accepted that life was "created" in a supernatural way. This fact explicitly invalidates the theory of evolution, whose main purpose is to deny creation.

James Tour is a leading origin-of-life researcher with over 630 research publications and over 120 patents. He was inducted into the National Academy of Inventors in 2015, listed in “The World’s Most Influential Scientific Minds” by Thomson Reuters in 2014, and named “Scientist of the Year” by R&D Magazine. Here is how he recently described the state of the field: We have no idea how the molecules that compose living systems could have been devised such that they would work in concert to fulfill biology’s functions. We have no idea how the basic set of molecules, carbohydrates, nucleic acids, lipids and proteins were made and how they could have coupled in proper sequences, and then transformed into the ordered assemblies until there was the construction of a complex biological system, and eventually to that first cell. Nobody has any idea on how this was done when using our commonly understood mechanisms of chemical science. Those that say that they understand are generally wholly uninformed regarding chemical synthesis. Those that say, “Oh this is well worked out,” they know nothing—nothing—about chemical synthesis—nothing. … From a synthetic chemical perspective, neither I nor any of my colleagues can fathom a prebiotic molecular route to construction of a complex system. We cannot even figure out the prebiotic routes to the basic building blocks of life: carbohydrates, nucleic acids, lipids, and proteins. Chemists are collectively bewildered. Hence I say that no chemist understands prebiotic synthesis of the requisite building blocks, let alone assembly into a complex system. That’s how clueless we are. I have asked all of my colleagues—National Academy members, Nobel Prize winners—I sit with them in offices. Nobody understands this. So if your professors say it’s all worked out, if your teachers say it’s all worked out, they don’t know what they’re talking about.23

Butterfield’s studies on massage have turned up intriguing evidence that massage performed shortly after exercise may increase protein synthesis in the muscle, at least in rats. “We think it’s the mechanical signal that the massage gives. We’re giving the cell a signal to react differently.” His results have been repeated in animal studies, but await confirmation in humans. If this happens in people too, it might mean that massage could help muscles heal from exercise-induced damage by promoting repairs via protein synthesis, but that idea remains theoretical and unproven as of yet.

The genetic program as a vital factor is not the same as the DNA molecules in the genes, for these are just molecules, not mindlike entities. The fact that qualities of mind are commonly projected onto the genes, especially the qualities of selfish, competitive people within capitalist societies, makes it easy to forget that they are just chemicals. As such, they play a chemical role, and their activity is confined to the chemical level. The genetic code in the DNA molecules determines the sequence of amino-acid building blocks in protein molecules , the so-called primary structure of the proteins. The genes dictate the primary stucture of proteins, not the specific shape of a duck's foot or a lamb's kidney or an orchid. The way the proteins are arranged in cells, the ways cells are arranged in tissues, and tissues in organs, and organs in organisms are not programmed in the genetic code , which can only program protein molecules. Given the right genes and hence the right proteins, and the right systems by which protein synthesis is controlled, the organism is somehow supposed to assemble itself automatically. This is rather like delivering the right materials to a building site at the right times and expecting a house to grow spontaneously.

During the Cambrian explosion, major paradigm shifts took only tens of millions of years. Later, humanoids developed over a period of millions of years, and Homo sapiens over a period of only hundreds of thousands of years. With the advent of a technology-creating species the exponential pace became too fast for evolution through DNA-guided protein synthesis, and evolution moved on to human-created technology. This does not imply that biological (genetic) evolution is not continuing, just that it is no longer leading the pace in terms of improving order (or of the effectiveness and efficiency of computation).

Genes are merely codes. They act as a set of rules and as a biological template for the synthesis of the proteins that give each particular cell its characteristic structure and functions. They are, as it were, alive and dynamic architectural and mechanical plans. Whether the plan becomes realized depends on far more than the gene itself. Genes exist and function in the context of living organisms. The activities of cells are defined not simply by the genes in their nuclei but by the requirements of the entire organism — and by the interaction of that organism with the environment in which it must survive. Genes are turned on or off by the environment. For this reason, the greatest influences on human development, health and behaviour are those of the nurturing environment. Hardly anyone who raises plants or animals would ever dispute the primary role of early care in shaping how genetic endowment and potential will unfold. For reasons that have little to do with science, many people have difficulty grasping the same concept when it comes to the development of human beings. This paralysis of thought is all the more ironic, since of all animal species it is the human whose long-term functioning is most profoundly regulated by the early environment. Given the paucity of evidence for any decisive role of genetic factors in most questions of illness and health, why all the hoopla about the genome project? Why the pervasive genetic fundamentalism? We are social beings, and science, like all disciplines, has its ideological and political dimensions. As Hans Selye pointed out, the unacknowledged assumptions of the scientist will often limit and define what will be discovered. Settling for the view that illnesses, mental or physical, are primarily genetic allows us to avoid disturbing questions about the nature of the society in which we live. If “science” enables us to ignore poverty or man-made toxins or a frenetic and stressful social culture as contributors to disease, we can look only to simple answers: pharmacological and biological. Such an approach helps to justify and preserve prevailing social values and structures. It may also be profitable.

a small study of triathletes in their fifties showing that rates of muscle protein synthesis in these masters athletes were lower than those of athletes in their twenties.1 His research suggests that older athletes may have an “anabolic resistance” to protein that makes it harder for their bodies to convert protein into muscle, and that may help explain why it takes longer for them to repair exercise-induced muscle damage. (It’s also an argument for keeping your protein intake up as you age.)

The actual mechanics of cell division, according to Dick McIntosh at the University of Denver, require significantly more instructions than it takes to build a moon rocket or supercomputer. First of all, the cell needs to duplicate all of its molecules, that is DNA, RNA, proteins, lipids, etc. At the organelle level, several hundred mitochondria, large areas of ER, new Golgi bodies, cytoskeletal structures, and ribosomes by the million all need to be duplicated so that the daughter cells have enough resources to grow and, in turn, divide themselves. All these processes make up the ‘cell cycle’. Some cells will divide on a daily basis, others live for decades without dividing. The cell cycle is divided into phases, starting with interphase, the period between cell divisions (about 23 hours), and mitosis (M phase), the actual process of separating the original into two daughter cells (about 1 hour). Interphase is further split into three distinct periods: gap 1 (G1, 4–6 hours), a synthesis phase (S, 12 hours), and gap 2 (G2, 4–6 hours). Generally, cells continue to grow throughout interphase, but DNA replication is restricted to the S phase. At the end of G1 there is a checkpoint. If nutrient and energy levels are insufficient for DNA synthesis, the cell is diverted into a phase called G0. In 2001 Tim Hunt, Paul Nurse, and Leeland Hartwell received the Nobel Prize for their work in discovering how the cell cycle is controlled. Tim Hunt found a set of proteins called cyclins, which accumulate during specific stages of the cell cycle. Once the right level is reached, the cell is ‘allowed’ to progress to the next stage and the cyclins are destroyed. Cyclins then start to build up again, keeping a score of the progress at each point of the cycle, and only allowing progression to the next stage if the correct cyclin level has been reached.

A classic example in the nutritional realm is the age-related difference in muscle protein synthesis (MPS) in response to protein feeding. Subjects in their seventies require nearly double the protein dose in a single meal to maximally stimulate MPS compared to subjects in their twenties.40

Life, as we know it on earth, appears as a synthesis of two macromolecular systems. The proteins, because of their versatility and chemical reactivity, do all the work but are unable to replicate themselves in any simple way. The nucleic acids seem tailor-made for replication but can achieve rather little else compared with the more elaborate and better equipped proteins. RNA and DNA are the dumb blondes of the biomolecular world, fit mainly for reproduction (with a little help from proteins) but of little use for much of the really demanding work. The problem of the origin of life would be a great deal easier to approach if there were only one family of macromolecules, capable of doing both jobs, replication and catalysis, but life as we know it employs two families. This may well be due to the fact that no macromolecule exists which could conveniently carry out both functions, because of the limitations of organic chemistry; because, that is, of the nature of things.

As soon as possible, following your workout you need to consume: • 30 – 50 grams of a lean complete protein like whey, soy, egg, chicken or fish. • 30 – 50 grams of carbohydrates with a high glycemic index. Why lean protein? Because fat slows the absorption of protein and carbs. During a brief window of opportunity after your workout, protein synthesis occurs at the highest rate. This is due to the micro-trauma (broken-down muscle tissue) that occurred during your workout. Complete recovery will be optimized if you provide your muscles with a large supply of amino acids—the key components of protein—within 45 minutes after your training session. A whey protein shake is the best post-workout protein choice because it is so rapidly absorbed, and it has the highest efficiency ratio, or availability to the body, of all proteins. Why carbs with a high glycemic index? Immediately following your workout is the only time to eat carbs that rapidly absorb into the blood stream as the glucose causes an insulin spike. Insulin helps shuttle protein into the muscles, repairing and building new muscle. It is also an important hormone that regulates the storage, replacement, and use of glucose. During a workout, the body uses stored glucose that is in the blood and muscles as fuel for the activity. If the lost glucose isn’t refilled within about 45 minutes after training, your body rapidly goes from an anabolic state (muscle growth and repair) to a catabolic state (cannibalizing of the body’s muscle for protein and energy). Since insulin signals the body to replenish and store glycogen, and the release of insulin is best triggered by eating foods with a high glycemic index, it makes sense that eating carbohydrates with a high glycemic index, along with some lean protein, is the best post-workout choice. An effective and convenient post workout meal is a whey or soy protein supplement, which contains maltodextrin, or simple sugars, as its carb source.

The sustained release of cortisol in states of chronic stress results in the disruption of two things vital for learning: neuroplasticity and hippocampal health (Podgorny & Gulyaeva, 2021; Raffington et al., 2018). It inhibits neuroplasticity by inhibiting protein synthesis, an essential aspect of brain building. At the same time, it results in the death of hippocampal neurons through the disruption of cellular processes of homeostasis. At its core, psychotherapy is a learning process which relies on our clients’ ability to learn new information and practice new ways of being. From specific stress reduction techniques to the soothing effects of a supportive relationship, stress modulation and success in psychotherapy go hand in hand. Thus, stress reduction skills should not be limited only to those complaining of stress disorders, but should be a central part of our work with all clients. While evolution once favored an anxious gene, fitness in our contemporary world may require a state of mind and brain that is open to new learning, mindfulness, and relaxation.

Like all forms of learning,29 extinction requires the synthesis of proteins in neurons that are learning and storing the new information. In this case, protein synthesis is required in both the infralimbic cortex30 and the amygdala31 for the effects of extinction to persist as a long-term memory.

For most if not all forms of memory, in most if not all organisms, the protein synthesis process underlying memory storage is triggered by the activation of certain genes within the neurons forming memory. A key activator is the gene transcription factor, cyclic AMP response binding element protein (CREB).32 Extinction learning is no exception because it, too, involves CREB-dependent protein synthesis.33 CREB activity is regulated by neuromodulators, such as norepinephrine and dopamine, that are released by way of CeA outputs. Many other molecules and steps come into play as well.34 The result is that during extinction learning, recently active synapses on those neurons that undergo protein synthesis are strengthened, and new patterns of synaptic connections across the various neurons in the network constitute the memory. Reactivation of those synapses results in retrieval of the extinction memory, which suppresses the original CS-US association.

Fifth, after any learning experience, effort should be made to minimize activities that might disrupt memory consolidation. For both explicit and implicit memory, consolidation depends on gene expression and protein synthesis.80 This process takes a minimum of four to six hours; events that happen molecularly or behaviorally during this time can interfere with the consolidation process and make the memory weaker.81 Isolating patients after exposure might be impractical, as they usually need to get back to life’s activities; but it may be needed for optimal benefit. One could envision overnight clinics where such a procedure could be done.82 An overnight sequester would also take advantage of the fact that important aspects of memory consolidation occur during sleep.83

b. Procedural Differences Between Consolidation vs. Reconsolidation Studies. In studies of consolidation, typically a protein synthesis inhibitor (a drug known to block consolidation) is given immediately after training. Then short-term memory (STM) is tested. The next day, long-term memory is tested. The typical finding is that STM is intact (showing that the memory was formed) but LTM is impaired (indicating that STM was not consolidated into a persistent LTM). In reconsolidation studies, the drug is given after retrieval of a fully consolidated memory. STM and LTM are then tested. The typical finding is that post-retrieval STM is intact (showing that the memory was present during retrieval) but LTM is impaired. The conclusion is that during retrieval, memory is destabilized and has to be reconsolidated via protein synthesis to persist as LTM.

If you eat more protein than needed for the synthesis of new proteins by cells, the excess is used for energy or stored as fat.

The energies of the electromagnetic spectrum include microwaves, radio waves, x-rays, extremely low-frequency waves, sound harmonic frequencies, ultraviolet rays, and even infrared waves. Specific frequencies of electromagnetic energy can influence the behavior of DNA, RNA, and protein synthesis; alter protein shape and function; control gene regulation and expression; stimulate nerve-cell growth; and influence cell division and cell differentiation, as well as instruct specific cells to organize into tissues and organs. All of these cellular activities influenced by energy are part of the expression of life. And

The research shows that protein synthesis caps out around 30 or 40 grams and that spreading out your protein is better. If you spread the protein evenly, it usually averages out to about 25 to 30 grams per meal for women and 35 to 40 grams per meal for men during fat-loss programs (maybe a little more for big, tall, or highly active people).

Genes are, in fact, classified by the type of stimulus that turns them on and off. For example, experience-dependent or activity-dependent genes are activated when we’re having novel experiences, learning new information, and healing. These genes generate protein synthesis and chemical messengers to instruct stem cells to morph into whatever types of cells are needed at the time for healing

1.       Increases muscle mass 2.       Decreases muscle damage  3.       Accelerates repair and recovery  4.       Replenishes glycogen stores in the muscle 5.       Increases Nitric Oxide (NO) synthesis thereby increasing blood flow 6.       Increases fat oxidation, burning more fat 7.       Increases protein synthesis 8.       Increases removal of waste products such as lactic acid 9.       Replenishes energy stores such as creatine phosphate

Though glucose is a primary fuel for the brain, it is not, however, the only fuel, and dietary carbohydrates are not the only source of that glucose. If the diet includes less than 130 grams of carbohydrates, the liver increases its synthesis of molecules called ketone bodies, and these supply the necessary fuel for the brain and central nervous system. If the diet includes no carbohydrates at all, ketone bodies supply three-quarters of the energy to the brain. The rest comes from glucose synthesized from the amino acids in protein, either from the diet or from the breakdown of muscle, and from a compound called glycerol that is released when triglycerides in the fat tissue are broken down into their component fatty acids. In these cases, the body is technically in a state called ketosis, and the diet is often referred to as a ketogenic diet.

Based on my research, I think probably the most disheartening finding is that taking supplemental vitamin D creates a metabolic demand on the liver to flip it into the bioactive form. This demand uses up magnesium, and the bioactive vitamin D triggers the synthesis of metallothionein, a protein that binds up copper a thousand times stronger than it binds up zinc, as we noted previously. So suddenly we have practitioners chasing a form of vitamin D that’s flawed using a range that’s flawed, creating potassium wasting, which then leads to a buildup of iron accumulation in the tissue. Then we find out that copper is being bound up by metallothionein and therefore is no longer available for metabolic transactions, and neither is magnesium. Collectively, this series of events creates a metabolic crisis in our mitochondria. This

On Degenerate Templates and the Adaptor Hypothesis: A Note for the RNA Tie Club,” which Crick sent out early in 1955, is the first of his master-works about protein synthesis and the coding problem. By 1966, he had written two dozen papers related to the subject. Six at least were of great and general importance. Two of those included experiments and were written with collaborators. One more paper, of pleasing ingenuity, happened to be wrong: nature turned out to be less elegant than Crick’s imagination. Of the entire run, however, this first was the most unprecedented and original. The paper defined the next questions, and many were new questions. More, it established the way the questions were to be approached, and the terms in which they were to be argued. Most generally, it took for granted that the questions were spatial, physical, logical, easy to apprehend, and therefore tractable and even—in principle—simple. Yet even now, only a few hundred people have ever read the paper—for the surprising reason that it has never been published. It remained a note for the RNA Tie Club: seventeen foolscap pages, typewritten, double-spaced, mimeographed.

In the early fifties, a number of people were trying to make protein synthesis happen outside the cell, so that the process could be analyzed and played with. Here, Zamecnik’s lab led. The idea was to put various combinations of cellular components and juices together, without the presence of living cells, and then to add labelled amino acids to see if the combination would link up some proteins. Such biochemical cocktails for protein synthesis in the test tube were called the cell-free system.

mTOR regulates the nutrients that affect anabolism, protein synthesis, and cellular growth, while AMPK stimulates the body’s backup fuel mechanisms and maintains energy homeostasis.

AMPK regulates not only the breakdown pathways and protein synthesis but also plays a crucial role in skeletal muscle homeostasis and protein turnover.

We talk about protein as a single macronutrient, but it’s just the delivery system for twenty different individual amino acids, which play dual roles: protein synthesis and the creation of new biomolecules and/or metabolic signals. This means all amino acids (AAs) have two primary purposes: Supporting the body’s physical structure. Supporting physiological functions such as neurotransmitter and antioxidant production and protein synthesis.

Vast swaths of nonprotein-coding DNA, making up about 98 percent of the genome, are sensitive to an unending stream of environmental input and translate these signals to affect gene transcription. That is, they use stimuli such as nurturing by a parent, the contents of our meals, a roller-coaster ride, or a difficult interaction with a boss to guide suppression or enhancement of protein synthesis, orchestrating a symphony of molecular changes that plays from a score of everything we experience—what’s in the air, in the news, the background and foreground of our lives.

Preworkout recommendation: To increase collagen synthesis, tissue regeneration, and joint recovery, supplement with 5–10 grams of collagen protein 30–60 minutes before exercise. Choose a supplement that lists “hydrolyzed collagen,” “collagen hydrolysate,” or “collagen peptides” to mirror the supplements proven effective in studies. Adding 100–200 mg of vitamin C to your preworkout routine further supports tissue repair and healing rates. Type II collagen supplements appear to be preferentially effective at reducing cartilage inflammation in dosages as low as 10 mg per day.161 For added joint inflammation support, you could also supplement with type II collagen immediately before training.

It impacts the gallbladder by causing contraction and release of stored bile.1 2 3 Milk Thistle (Silybum Marianum) has the ability to increase the solubility of bile and its use has been shown to significantly reduce biliary cholesterol concentrations and bile saturation indexes.4 It has potent antioxidant activity which supports phase I detoxification and prevents the depletion of hepatic glutathione which is important for phase II detoxification.5 6 7 Silybum marianum has anti-inflammatory chemical properties that are inhibitors of inflammatory prostaglandins and leukotriens as well as chemical properties that promote protein synthesis to replace damaged liver cells. 8 9 10 11 Ginger (Zingiber Officinale) contains chemical compounds that have been shown to increase bile secretion and to reduce hepatic cholesterol levels by up-regulating the enzyme cholesterol-7-alpha-hydorxylase which is the rate limiting enzyme in bile acid synthesis.12 13 14

Their benefits are indisputable: I have calculated that no less than 40 percent of the global population receive their dietary protein (directly from crops and indirectly from animal foodstuffs) from harvests that got nitrogen from the Haber-Bosch synthesis of ammonia; in China, the share is about 50 percent.

we might reframe the answer in evolutionary terms. Recall that unicellular organisms evolved into multicellular organisms—not once, but many independent times. The driving forces that goaded that evolution, we think, were the capacity to escape predation, the ability to compete more effectively for scarce resources, and to conserve energy by specialization and diversification. Unitary blocks—cells—found mechanisms to achieve this specialization and diversification by combining common programs (metabolism, protein synthesis, waste disposal) with specialized programs (contractility in the case of muscle cells, or insulin-secreting capacity in pancreatic beta cells). Cells coalesced, repurposed, diversified—and conquered.

Beaudart, C., et al. (2017), Nutrition and physical activity in the prevention and treatment of sarcopenia: Systematic review, Osteoporosis International 28:1817–33; Lozano-Montoya, I. (2017), Nonpharmacological interventions to treat physical frailty and sarcopenia in older patients: A systematic overview—the SENATOR Project ONTOP Series, Clinical Interventions in Aging 12:721–40. 55. Fiatarone, M. A., et al. (1990), High-intensity strength training in nonagenarians: Effects on skeletal muscle, Journal of the American Medical Association 263:3029–34. 56. Donges, C. E., and Duffield, R. (2012), Effects of resistance or aerobic exercise training on total and regional body composition in sedentary overweight middle-aged adults, Applied Physiology, Nutrition, and Metabolism 37:499–509; Mann, S., Beedie, C., and Jimenez, A. (2014), Differential effects of aerobic exercise, resistance training, and combined exercise modalities on cholesterol and the lipid profile: Review, synthesis, and recommendations, Sports Medicine 44:211–21. 57. Phillips, S. M., et al. (1997), Mixed muscle protein synthesis and breakdown after resistance exercise in humans, American Journal of Physiology 273:E99–E107; McBride, J. M. (2016), Biomechanics of resistance exercise, in Haff and Triplett, Essentials of Strength Training and Conditioning, 19–42.

The three pillars for protein synthesis and assimilation are a) frequent and timely meals (those recesses and meal breaks are there for a reason), b) activity and play (especially lost games that challenge the full body strength like kho-kho, langdi, even kandaphodi where you learn to jump over each other’s bodies) and c) regulated, early bedtime. You get these three in place, you get the protein, fuel their growth and keep them disease-free. The rest is just bakwas.

Professor of Biophysics at Iowa State University Dr. Yeon-Kyun Shin is a noted authority on how cholesterol functions within neural networks to transmit messages. He put it bluntly in an interview for a ScienceDaily reporter:28 If you deprive cholesterol from the brain, then you directly affect the machinery that triggers the release of neurotransmitters. Neurotransmitters affect the data-processing and memory functions. In other words—how smart you are and how well you remember things. If you try to lower the cholesterol by taking medication that is attacking the machinery of cholesterol synthesis in the liver, that medicine goes to the brain too. And then it reduces the synthesis of cholesterol, which is necessary in the brain. Our study shows there is a direct link between cholesterol and the neurotransmitter release, and we know exactly the molecular mechanics of what happens in the cells. Cholesterol changes the shape of the proteins to stimulate thinking and memory.

If you deprive cholesterol from the brain, then you directly affect the machinery that triggers the release of neurotransmitters. Neurotransmitters affect the data-processing and memory functions. In other words—how smart you are and how well you remember things. If you try to lower the cholesterol by taking medication that is attacking the machinery of cholesterol synthesis in the liver, that medicine goes to the brain too. And then it reduces the synthesis of cholesterol, which is necessary in the brain. Our study shows there is a direct link between cholesterol and the neurotransmitter release, and we know exactly the molecular mechanics of what happens in the cells. Cholesterol changes the shape of the proteins to stimulate thinking and memory.