The SRP Structure:
The Guide in the Cell
Imagine that you are visiting a country for a
very short time and that you do not know the language
spoken in that country. In this situation, you
will urgently need the services of a guide. Similarly,
SRP acts as a guide for newly produced proteins. |
Imagine that you are making a very short visit to a
foreign country whose language you do not know. In this
situation you urgently need a guide that will both allow
you to communicate with the local people and help you
with your visit without getting lost.
Similarly, there is a particle in cells that acts as
a guide for newly formed proteins. This guide is the
SRP mentioned above whose complex structure is composed
of protein and RNS molecules. On the exterior it resembles
a bowling pin only 0.000000024 meter in size.
SRP understands the language both
of proteins and of the receptor-entrance channel complex
on the membrane of the endoplasmic reticulum. The complicated
structure of this guide is not yet completely understood;
scientists suspect that the RNA molecule in the SRP
has an important role, but they have not been able to
understand the function of this molecule yet. Moreover,
the intricacies of the relation between the SRP guide
and the receptor-entrance channel are still unknown.56
A professor of molecular
biochemistry known for his research in this field, J.A.
Doudna, stated that the relation formed between the
protein and the RNA, which is one of the components
of the SRP, is a "fascinating network"57
and "example of true molecular collusion."58
Indeed, this structure is truly amazing because RNA
and protein have been created in such a way as to work
in flawless harmony with each other, and have been brought
together for the performance of a special function.
There is no difference in proposing that this design
came to be by chance and maintaining that a cell phone
came to be by an alliance made by atoms and molecules
among themselves. The crystal structure of this protein
that became understood only in the year 2000 is, without
doubt, a product of superior design. It is an eternal
sign of the power and knowledge of God.
Communication and Transportation in
the Nucleus
It is known that a cell's nucleus contains a data bank
(the DNA molecule) in which all physical characteristics
are encoded in their smallest details. Many operations
within a cell are carried on with reference to the information
in the DNA. Therefore, between the nucleus and the cytoplasm
and the various organelles there is heavy protein traffic
at every moment. This traffic and communication is organized
to respond to the needs of the cell.
The entrance-exit complexes on the membrane of
a cell's nucleus. In the lower section of the
illustration you can clearly see the channel opening
through which RNA and DNA molecules can pass. |
The nucleus of the cell is different
from other organelles; it is surrounded by a double
membrane. On this membrane are located entrance-exit
complexes (Nuclear Pore Complexes) used by proteins.
These are entrance-exit complexes and not entrance-exit
channels because of their structure. Thanks to this
special system, comparatively large groups of molecules
like RNA and DNA can pass through the nuclear membrane
so that the delicate structure of the protein and the
molecules are not damaged. When the entrance/exit complex
is completely open, they are ten times bigger than the
channels in other organelles. Research has shown that
there are ten entrances and ten exits every second through
each entrance/exit complex.59
The entrance and exit of a protein into and out of the
nucleus of a cell is completed under the guidance of
"karyopherin." This special guide is of various types
that bind to the protein and direct it to the entrance/exit
complex. Moreover, different proteins and enzymes also
have a function in the transfer operation.
This extraordinarily integrated and
complex protein transfer system has once again left
evolutionist scientists without recourse; Professor
Günter Blobel confessed that "the detailed mechanisms
for transport across the NPC[Nuclear Pore Complex] are
still unknown."60 Take, for example,
the karyopherin that establishes communication and directs
the passage; the scientific articles written on the
functions of this one particle fill thousands of pages.
The extraordinary design of one single particle is a
clear demonstration of creation. If we notice that several
guide particles exist with different characteristics
and structures, we better understand that God's eternal
knowledge encompasses all things.
Unique Systems Whose Secrets Have Not
Yet Been Discovered
Günter Blobel |
Every day scientific research sheds light on the various
operations of the cell's "zip code" system. A short
time ago, it was understood that a system similar to
this existed in the immune system and antibodies are
produced by this method. Moreover, it is known that
a group of special molecules exist that let blood cells
leave the circulatory system and direct them to the
relevant tissues.
What we know about the incomparable systems in the
cells is quite small compared to what we do not know.
The Nobel Prize is usually shared by a number of scientists,
but in 1999, only Gunter Blobel took the award for his
discovery of the zip code system in cells. In an interview
done after he received the award, Professor Blobel said:
We are at the level now that we
understand many of the basic mechanisms of protein
traffic within the cell but we haven't understood
them all yet. We are working, for instance, on traffic
between the nucleus and the cytoplasm, and we are
far from understanding how this traffic is regulated
and how it works.61
The truth is evident. No matter where we go, every
point in the depths of space, of the sea, of the forest
or in the deep recesses of our bodies is redolent with
signs of God's knowledge, art and power. People were
unaware in past centuries of the wonders of creation
contained in cells; but each one of them captures the
imagination today. Every new development in cell biology
documents the fact that the claims of evolutionists
are deceitful nonsense. At the same time, they show
once again that the wonderful order in cells was created
by God's single command; "Be" and that they are under
His control at each moment. Every detail determined
relative to a cell is an occasion for us to exalt the
glory and power of our Lord, Almighty God.
His command when He desires a thing
is just to say to it, "Be!" and it is. Glory be to Him
Who has the Dominion of all things in His Hand. To Him
you will be returned. (Qur'an, 36: 82-83)
56
R.T. Batey, R.P. Rambo, L. Lucast, B. Rha, J.A. Doudna,
"Crystal structure of the ribonucleoprotein core
of the signal recognition particle," Science, 18
February 2000, vol. 287, no. 5456, pp. 1232-1239
57 Jennifer A. Doudna, "RNA Catalysis, RNA Processing,
and Translation," 2000, http://www.hhmi.org/research/investigators/doudna.html
58 YALE News Release, "Yale Researcher Identifies
Structure of Molecular Zip Code Reader," 2000,
http:// www.yale.edu/opa/newsr/00-02-17-01.all.html
59 The Rockefeller University News, "Rockefeller
University Cell Biologist, Gunter Blobel, Wins 1999
Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine," 1999, http://www.rockefeller.edu/pubinfo/blobel.nr.html
60 E. Conti, M. Uy, L. Leighton, G. Blobel, J. Kuriyan,
"Crystallographic Analysis of the Recognition of
a Nuclear Localization Signal by the Nuclear Import
Factor Karyopherin alpha," Cell, July 1998, vol.
94, pp. 193-204
61 Online NewsHour, "Nobel Prize for Medicine,"
11 October 1999, http://www.pbs.org/newshour/nobel_1999/blobel.html
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