Biochemists' Song Book

Harold Baum

• Publisher: CRC Press
• Year: 2017
• Print ISBN: 9781138406957
• eBook ISBN: 9781135744533
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Medicine
• Subtopic: Biochemistry in Medicine

This songbook presents information on biochemical pathways set to well-known songs, providing students with an easy way to remember often complicated information. The songs should also serve as end-of-term review material.

PROTEIN BIOSYNTHESIS

(Tune: “My Bonny Lies Over the Ocean”)

The primary sequence of proteins
Is coded within DNA
On sense strand of the double helix
Coiled antiparallel way.
(Introns and exons, changes post-transcriptional, and all
Glycosylations, don't alter such basics at all).

DNAs read 3 prime to 5 prime
Triplet permutations of base
Degenerate, non-overlapping
Variations occur at third place
(A-T and G-C, the four deoxyribotides, besides
U-A and C-G, complement as nucleotides).

Now DNA acts as a template
For RNA polymerase
Transcribing the genetic message
But in antiparallel phase
(5 prime to 3 prime, that's the new message's way, OK?
Encoded this time in new messenger RNA).

tRNA we now consider
With clover leaf multiple bend
Anticodon length at the bottom
Ad'nine at the free 3 prime end
(From 3 to 5 now, so runs that coding base batch,
or patch Third bases somehow, can wobble a bit when they match).

tRNA now gets as loading
Amino acyl moiety
By way of an enzyme-bound donor
Amino acyl AMP
(Enzyme selective, for each amino acyl load—its mode
Takes the respective tRNA with the right code).

The ribosome has two subunits
Differing somewhat in weight,
To start protein synthetic sequence
They firstly must dissociate
(Eukaryotic, to 60S and 40S—unless
Prokaryotic, which are similar but weigh less).

Methionine has as adaptor
That is, as its tRNA,
A species with an anticodon
To code saying ‘please start this way’
(Met tRNA binds mRNA AUG, you see,
Factors can now play their roles aided by GTP).

They're complexed all with small subunit
Then larger subunit locks in
Met tRNA on the P site
And translation now can begin
(Next tRNA, with its amino acyl on, stuck on
Binds at the site A, at the very next codon along).

Methionine now is transferred from
Ester binding on tRNA
To form peptide bond with amino
Acyl group tagged on at site A
(Messenger moves on, peptidyl adaptor to P, you see
Still on its codon, Met tRNA falls off free).

New loaded adaptor attaches
At A site, next bit of the code
Peptidyl now is transferred to
Amino of incoming load
(Messenger in train, loads site P with tripeptidyl, in style
Frees site A again, to take next amino acyl).

Thus chain grows from end free amino
Specified by mRNA
Till there's a termination message
Like UAG or UAA
(Peptides when complete, released to their subsequent fate, they state
And when not replete, ribosomes will dissociate).

Translation requires many factors,
Breaks down GTP on the way,
Prokaryotics all start with
N-formyl Met tRNA
(On mRNA, translating in sequential train, again
Polysome array, makes replicates of the same chain).

Student feedback:

Oh golly that was a long saga,
Oh gosh how the scansion was strained,
I've just sung this song to my bonny,
No wonder my bonny looks pained.
Bring back, oh bring back, oh bring back my text book to me, to me
Bring back, oh bring back plain simple biochemistry.

HAEM BIOSYNTHESIS

(Tune: “A Policeman's Lot is not a Happy One”)

If you need more haemoglobin for tomorrow—for tomorrow
And your cytochromic store's run out of steam—out of steam
There's a metabolic pathway you should follow—you should follow
Biosynthetic route that leads to haem—leads to haem
In mitochondrion the path commences—path commences
The d-amino laevulinate way—'inate way
Glycine decarboxylates when it condenses—it condenses
On the synthetase with succinyl CoA.

Chorus: The most elegant of pathways you could dream—you could dream
For assembling porphyrins and making haem.

Haem inhibiting of that committing start meant—'itting start meant
Making d-ALA to meet your needs—meet your needs
Leaving now the mitochondrial compartment—'al compartment
Condense in pairs as dehydrase succeeds—'ase succeeds
Porphobilinogen the pyrrole product—pyrrole product
Now condenses head to tail, four to a string—to a string
Three ammoniums are lost forming that adduct—'ing that adduct
Methylene bridge is thus formed between each ring.

Chorus

Next, linear tetrapyrrole bound to synthase—bound to synthase
In cyclising loses fourth ammonia—'mmonia
And the synthase and cosynthase acting in phase—acting in phase
Make asymmetric cyclic polymer—polymer
Uroporphyrin...

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Dedication
• Preface to the First Edition
• Preface to the Second Edition
• Foreword
• Table of Contents
• The Michaelis Anthem
• In Praise of E.M.P.
• Waltz Round the Cycle
• ß Oxidation
• The Battle Hymn of the Aerobes
• The Chemiosmotic Theory
• Photosynthesis
• Blood Sugar
• Publisher's note
• The Glyoxylate Cycle
• The Pentose Phosphate Shunt
• Fatty Acid Biosynthesis
• We're Here Because Urea
• Protein Biosynthesis
• Haem Biosynthesis
• Metabolism of Odd-Number Carbon Fatty Acids
• Regulation of Ketogenesis
• Purine Biosynthesis
• Cholesterol Biosynthesis
• A Cautionary Carol