Proteins contain what elements?

Proteins contain what elements?

• A. CHONP
• B. CHON
• C. CHN
• D. COHN

Answer: (B)

Proteins are built from amino acids, and the four elements found in essentially all of their structure are carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen. The amino group brings in nitrogen, the carboxyl group provides oxygen (and hydrogen), and the carbon skeleton forms the backbone and side chains. While some proteins do contain sulfur in certain amino acids and can be modified by phosphate groups in rare cases, phosphorus isn’t a universal component of proteins, and not every protein includes sulfur. That makes the standard set of elements CHON the most accurate description of what proteins typically contain. The other options either omit oxygen, just rearrange the same elements, or include phosphorus, which isn’t a universal part of proteins.

Proteins are built from amino acids, and the four elements found in essentially all of their structure are carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen. The amino group brings in nitrogen, the carboxyl group provides oxygen (and hydrogen), and the carbon skeleton forms the backbone and side chains. While some proteins do contain sulfur in certain amino acids and can be modified by phosphate groups in rare cases, phosphorus isn’t a universal component of proteins, and not every protein includes sulfur. That makes the standard set of elements CHON the most accurate description of what proteins typically contain. The other options either omit oxygen, just rearrange the same elements, or include phosphorus, which isn’t a universal part of proteins.