We are the Proteasome

Osasu Oscar Igbinedion

We are ubiquitous but chambered and sequestered,
clustered upon each other, lest we fester.
Each of us blessed with a distinct role to test,
the lid and the base our sentinel borders.
These…. regulatory particles discriminately
funnelling in
and channelling out.
Sandwiched between lies the duo core:
alpha and beta,
separate but equal.
2 rings to plunder
and sunder
the ubiquitinated travellers.

The Science

The proteasome itself is a barrel-formed structure that can break down unneeded or damaged proteins via a chemical reaction. Each cell in the human body contains about 30,000 proteasomes, and each of them play a prominent role in the control of a diverse array of basic cellular activities by rapidly catalysing important biological reactions. They form a critical role in our body’s immune system, and their great diversity (in terms of structure and specific function) is currently being utilised to allow for the development of new (and patient specific) approaches for cancer management.

The Poet

Osasu Oscar Igbinedion is a Nigerian and naturalized-Irish, MSc Cancer Research student. An avid reader and writer since age 9. Representing Kilkenny College back in 2014, he was the first-place champion of the Senior Bishop Medal Essay Competition of the Diocese of Cashel, Ferns and Ossory. Osasu has a passion for both satirical and pragmatic literature such as Dante's Inferno and Arthur Schopenhauer's The World as Will and Representation.

Next poem: Anatomy Lesson by Mose Graves