Question

Why is proinsulin so called? How is proinsulin different from functional insulin in humans?

Answer 1

insulin is the hormone in our body that allows glucose) to get into the cells of our body. Produced in the pancreas.

Every living mammal needs insulin to survive. All the organism need insulin in order to maintain healthy blood sugar levels. Without enough insulin, blood sugar can rise to dangerously high levels.

Proinsulin is a protein molecule that serves as a precursor hormone, or prohormone, to insulin. Insulin is produced by the beta cells, which are pancreatic cells located in the islets of Langerhans, specifically through the cleavage of proinsulin by enzymes called protease. This cleavage process is important because measurement of the cleavage products can help doctors predict the actual amount of insulin production by the pancreas.