Please be mindful of the threat of plagiarism. Plagiarism occurs when anyone uses another person's words without giving t hem credit. DO NOT cut and paste any part of your answers and DO NOT simply reword a source you found on the internet. DTCC screens for plagiarism. If you are found to have used a source's words without citing them, you are guilty of plagiarism and will be referred to the division Dean for disciplinary action.
​Please research these questions and then write your own answers to them, incorporating the information you learned.  

 logical, supported answers will be rewarded with up to 5 supplemental points added to your first lecture assessment.    

   Submit your responses to the questions below
on Canvas via the assignments tab:
​lecture supplemental question 3.
This assignment is available until
​ the start of our fifth lecture class 8/31 at 9:30am. 

Lecture Supplement #3

                                                                    PKU and phenyalanine
​                             Many diet sodas contain an artificial sweetener called aspartame. 
                   Aspartame consists of two amino acids—aspartic acid and phenylalanine. 

1. a. Which R group is exhibited by aspartic acid?
    b. What characteristics would this R group confer to this amino acid?
    c. Due to these characteristics, how would you expect this amino acid to interact with other amino acids
         in a polypeptide?

2. a. Which R group is exhibited by phenylalanine?
     b. What characteristics would this R group confer to this amino acid?
     c. Due to these characteristics, how would you expect this amino acid to interact with other
         amino acids in a polypeptide chain?

3. Individuals with a condition called PKU (phenylketonuria) don't produce sufficient amounts of
    phenylalanine hydroxylase (PAH). 
    a. What type of molecule is phenylalanine hydroxylase?
    b. What products are produced by this molecule's actions.
    c. What is the formula for the reaction facilitated by this molecule?
    d. Does this molecule function in an anabolic or catabolic reaction?
​