Natural organic macromolecules

This is a brief and elementary report on recent structural studies on nucleic acids, polysaccharides and proteins in a historical perspective. Molecular size, shape and conformation are considered in relation to function. Progress in the sequencing of amino acid residues in proteins and in the determination of the nucleotide sequences in the macromolecules of nucleic acids is mentioned. The total syntheses of some simple nucleic acids and proteins are described. The x ray crystallography is emphasized in the determination of the complete three-dimensional structure of globular proteins. Optical rotatory dispersion and circular dichroism are reviewed as useful methods in the study of conformational transitions in solution, and some previously unpublished work from our laboratory is mentioned. The significance of the structural aspects of the macromolecules in their biological roles is considered briefly. This review was completed in December 1971.

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