How many protomers are present in hemoglobin?
Chemistry · High School · Sun Jan 24 2021
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Hemoglobin is composed of four polypeptide chains, and thus has four protomers. These protomers are two alpha (α) chains and two beta (β) chains. Each of these chains is associated with a heme group, allowing the hemoglobin molecule to bind four molecules of oxygen. The term 'protomer' in this context refers to each of the polypeptide subunits in the larger quaternary structure of the protein.