Jeff Cohlberg's Biochemistry Songs
from the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
California State University, Long Beach
UREA
Gluconeogenesis
Ketone Bodies is the Game to Play
Michaelis-Menten Calypso
UREA
(Tune: "Maria" from "West Side Story")
[My lab used to dissolve bovine
neurofilaments in 6 M urea and purify the three NF proteins by
chromatography in 6 M urea. Countless liters of 8 M urea stock
solution had to be treated with an ion exchange resin and charcoal to
remove cyanate, which can carbamylate amino groups on proteins.]
UREA!
I just go on filtering UREA.
I really do not know
Just how I'll get this pro-
tein pure.
UREA!
The benchtops are caked with UREA.
And with each gel I see
The yield has come to be
so poor.
UREA!
CM and Sephadex won't do it.
DEAE won't work -- I knew it!
UREA,
I'll never stop filtering UREA!
(Tune: "Yesterday")
Yesterday,
All my glucose seemed so far away
Now it looks as though it's here to stay
Since hormone action saved the day
Liver cells
Have receptors that bound glucagon
Freed G-alpha-s to move along
Adenylate cyclase turned on
(bridge)
Cyclic AMP activated PKA
Pyruvate kinase got phosphorylated
Inactivated
Think of this
F-2,6-BP will soon be missed
Replacing fluxes through glycolysis
With gluconeogenesis
(bridge)
From lactate and glycerol came carbohydrates,
From amino acids with
PEP carboxykinase
Now it seems
Glucose in the blood beyond my dreams,
Glucose from glycogenolysis
And gluconeogenesis.
Gluconeogenesis!
Ketone Bodies is the Game to Play
(Tune: "A Policeman's
Lot is
Not a Happy One" from "The Pirates of Penzance" by Gilbert and Sullivan)
When your exercising's
gotten rather furious
(rather
furious)
And glucose is
depleted from your blood
(from
your blood)
Then with sugar stores
you'd best not be penurious (be penurious)
Or soon you'll be
collapsing with a thud.
(with
a thud)
But when your liver
glycogen's dissolving
('gen's
dissolving)
And the energy demand
seems there to stay,
(there
to stay)
Then I think it's time
you'd better be resolving
(be
resolving)
That Ketone Bodies is
the game to play. OH!
When
oxaloacetate has gone away, gone away,
Then
Ketone Bodies is the game to play, game to play.'
When gluconeogenesis
is speeded,
('sis
is speeded)
PEP carboxykinase
activated,
(activated)
Then oxaloacetate
becomes depleted,
('comes
depleted)
Citrate synthetase
velocity deflated.
('ty
deflated)
If you go through
pyruvate to acetyl CoA,
(acetyl
CoA)
Pyruvate carboxylase
can save the day.
(save
the day)
But when burning fatty
acids there is no way
(there
is no way)
And Ketone Bodies is
the game to play. OH!
When
oxaloacetate has gone away, gone away,
Then
Ketone Bodies is the game to play, game to play.
If you bring two
acetyl CoA's together,
('A's
together)
Acetoacetyl CoA is
what you get.
(what
you get)
A third acetyl CoA we
now can tether,
(now
can tether)
And you'll get HMG
CoA, I bet.
('A,
I bet)
Then HMG CoA is split
asunder
(split
asunder)
To acetoacetate and
acetyl CoA.
('tyl
CoA)
Now, think a minute,
is it any wonder
(any
wonder)
That Ketone Bodies is
the game to play? OH!
When
oxaloacetate has gone away, gone away,
Then
Ketone Bodies is the game to play, game to play.
Acetoacetate you may
be reducing
(be
reducing)
With NADH from beta-oxidation,
(oxidation)
And hydroxybutyrate
you'll be producing,
(be
producing)
Destined for the blood
by membrane translocation. (translocation)
Now sometimes a CO2
you will be losing
(will
be losing)
And acetone is made,
but don't dismay,
(don't
dismay)
For the other ketone
bodies you'll be using,
(you'll
be using)
And Ketone Bodies is
the game to play. OH!
When
oxaloacetate has gone away, gone away,
Then
Ketone Bodies is the game to play, game to play.
Now the bloodstream
flows just like a mighty
torrent. (mighty torrent)
Ketone bodies go to
muscle and to brain.
(and
to brain)
And wasted ketone
bodies certainly aren't.
(certainly
aren't)
For liver's loss is
other tissues gain.
(tissues
gain)
For the brain, while
thinking glucose so nutritious, (so
nutritious)
Won't take fatty acids
up, it's sad to say,
(sad
to say)
But it finds ketone
bodies quite delicious,
(quite
delicious)
So Ketone Bodies is
the game to play. OH!
When
oxaloacetate has gone away, gone away,
Then
Ketone Bodies is the game to play, game to play.
Hydroxybutyrate
combines with NAD, now,
(NAD,
now)
Forms acetoacetate; it
does not fester.
(does
not fester)
Then a succinyl CoA, I
hope you'll see, now,
(hope
you'll see, now)
Gives energy for AcAc
CoA ester.
(CoA
ester)
Thiolase two acetyl
CoA's now produces,
(now
produces)
And ATP will soon be
on its way.
(on
its way)
Well, I hope it's
clear by now just what their use is.
(what their use is)
Yes, Ketone Bodies is
the game to play. OH!
When
oxaloacetate has gone away, gone away,
Then
Ketone Bodies is the game to play, game to play.
(Tune: This one
doesn't have a tune -- you can make up your own or just recite
it.)