How Life Works: The Inside Word from a Biochemist

174 Pages·2015·4.103 MB·English

by  Daphne Elliott, William Elliott

Biochemistry not only explains what DNA is and how it forms the blueprint
William Elliott
for who you are, it also explains how the food you eat is broken down,
supplying the energy to run a marathon. It shows the intricate structures and Daphne Elliott
of proteins and describes their amazing functions. With millions of
interactions and reactions all taking place in accord, biochemistry is the science
of how life works.
Complete with colour illustrations and written in a conversational style,
biochemist William Elliott unravels the mystery of life while revealing its majesty.
How do chemical reactions occur? How do genes hold information? Why do our
bodies age? What happens when someone gets cancer? How Life Works provides
the inside word for those who are curious about the workings of the microscopic
world inside us.
About the Authors
William (Bill) Elliott was a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Sciences and Head
of Biochemistry at The University of Adelaide for 23 years. In 1982 his department
was awarded the Australian Government’s first Centre of Excellence, for research
devoted to gene technology. In 2001, he was awarded the Centenary Medal W
for service to Australian society and science in molecular biosciences. At The i
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University of Adelaide, his legacy and achievements are celebrated annually by li
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the W.H. Elliott lecture and a research fellowship in his name. Bill passed away in m
2012, and the book was subsequently prepared for publication by his wife Daphne.
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Daphne Elliott is an Honorary Research Fellow in the School of Biological Sciences i
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at Flinders University. She was awarded the Chancellor’s Medal in 1994 for her t
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contribution to the education of women in Science and Mathematics and served a
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as Federal President of the Australian Federation of University Women. In 2002,
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she was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia for service to the promotion
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of women’s education and as an advocate for improving the status and human a
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rights of women.
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The Inside Word from a Biochemist
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The Inside Word from a Biochemist
William Elliott and Daphne Elliott
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© Daphne C. Elliott 2015 Front cover and title page: Abstract
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How life works : the inside word (CSIRO). The views expressed in
from a biochemist / Daphne this publication are those of the
C Elliott and William Elliott. author(s) and do not necessarily
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Biochemistry – Popular works. herein. The reader/user accepts all
Life – Origin. risks and responsibility for losses,
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Foreword
William Herdman (Bill) Elliott was born in County
Durham and graduated in Biochemistry from Cambridge
University, where he was elected to a Fellowship at
Trinity College. He spent several research years in
Cambridge, Harvard and Oxford, and immigrated to
Australia in 1957. After eight years at the Australian
National University, during which he was elected a
Fellow of the Australian Academy of Science, he was
appointed Professor of Biochemistry at the University of
Adelaide, a position he held with distinction for 23 years;
by his leadership he made his Department significant in
the world of biochemistry. During that time I was
fortunate to be a member of his staff, and all of us
worked with him in developing and enjoying the
adventures of teaching and research. I had an enduring
friendship with Bill after his retirement, and memories of
his humanity and good humour remain strong.
Bill’s ability as a researcher was equally matched by
his talent as a teacher who, enthused with his subject,
attracted countless students to biochemistry. He displayed
vi How Life Works
the breadth of his biochemical knowledge and writing
skills in his widely successful textbook (Biochemistry and
Molecular Biology, OUP) co-authored with his wife Dr
Daphne Elliott. It is now in its 5th edition, and reviews
have noted the style of writing as ‘refreshingly different,
more personal and more direct that seems to take the
reader on a one-to-one tutorial’. Others noted the
approachable style, and the skill in organising and
explaining complex material in an accessible way.
For many years Bill was eager to write about the
biochemical basis of living processes in a way that would
appeal to a general readership; a notable challenge. The
result is this book, an impressive piece of scientific
story-telling that deals with how living cells accomplish
their remarkable processes of growth and maintenance;
he describes them as ‘majestic’. His enthusiastic writing,
carefully crafted for understanding, is flavoured with
anecdotes including his personal acquaintance with
famous scientists. The conversational style, characteristic
of his textbook, together with thoughtful figures and
extra information in text boxes, adds to the quality of the
book. Apart from general appeal, as referred to in the
Preface, the style of this book should attract the attention
of senior school biology teachers. It is a tribute to
Professor Elliott’s character that he had the will, again
with the aid of his wife, to complete the work when in the
last months of his life in 2012.
Professor George E. Rogers; AO DSc FAA
Honorary Research Fellow, Molecular and
Biomedical Science
University of Adelaide
Contents
Foreword v
Preface xi
Acknowledgements xv
Chapter 1 The fantastic nature of matter 1
The living unit of organisms is the cell 4
Biology is dependent on chemistry 5
The Big Bang 6
What are atoms made of? 7
Where did atoms other than hydrogen
come from? 10
The structure of atoms 11
Arrangement of components in atoms 15
What are molecules? 19
The chemical properties of the elements are
determined by the electrons 23
Chapter 2 The problem of how to supply
energy to living processes 29
What do living organisms need energy for? 35
The universal energy currency unit of all
life forms 37
viii How Life Works
What makes the structure of ATP so
suitable for its central role in all of life? 42
How is ATP used in the body to drive
the synthesis of the large molecules
of living matter? 46
A long research controversy: how is
ATP produced in mitochondria? 48
Chapter 3 Enzymes overcome the chemical
reaction barrier problem 55
Enzymes bring about all the reactions
of life 62
Enzymes often need a vitamin derivative
or a trace metal to function 67
If the activities of enzymes were not
regulated there would be metabolic chaos 72
Why don’t digestive enzymes digest the body? 75
Chapter 4 Proteins: the wonder molecules of life 77
How can one type of molecule have so
many different functions? 78
A single wrong amino acid out of hundreds
can cause a genetic disease 85
Folding of the proteins 87
Complex structures of life form from protein
molecules by a process of self-assembly 93
The evolutionary record is written in the
amino acid sequence of proteins 94
Chapter 5 The genetic problem and DNA 97
Replication of DNA 103
Contents ix
Chapter 6 Deciphering the genetic code 109
How are amino acids represented by the base
sequence of mRNA? 111
Gene mutations affect the amino acid
sequences of proteins, causing genetic
diseases 116
Chapter 7 The life and death of cells 123
Strict control of cell multiplication is
necessary in animals 124
Stem cells 127
Programmed cell death 132
The human genome project gave startling
information about human DNA 136
Chapter 8 The origin of life 141
Where did the first biological molecules come
from? 143
The ancient RNA world 144
Why has RNA been replaced by DNA in all
cellular life? 146
How were cell membranes formed? 147
Index 151