Excerpt from The Protein Element in NutritionThe important part played by the complex body protein and its allied nitrogenous compounds is acknowledged by all students of nutrition.AS a food material it is the one constituent that is indis pensable; it is the only substance of the three main classes of proximate principles that is absolutely essential for the carrying out of those vital phenomena whose aggregate may be considered to represent the processes of life.The more important tissues of both animal and vegetable life consist largely of this protein material, and it is in connection with the changes protein undergoes within the living organism the chemical changes by which the protein of the food is prepared for absorption and incorporation into the bioplasm, the changes which it undergoes while it shares in the life of the tissues, and, finally, those by which it is broken down again into waste products and eliminated from the body - it is in connection with these that much of the interest in the subject centres. It is but natural, therefore, that the chemistry of metabolic processes Should have attracted the attention of large numbers of investi gators. The result oi this has been that the literature of the subject has already attained enormous proportions.About the PublisherForgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.comThis book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.
