Proteins form the backbone of a healthy diet. Your body uses them for thousands of different functions, structures and processes that scientists are still researching. Proteins are made up of smaller structures called amino acids. Your body needs 20 amino acids but cannot make nine of them. You have to get these nine from your diet, or your body cannot make certain vital proteins. Without your full complement of amino acids and the proteins that come from it, your body will not function properly.
Antibodies
Antibodies constitute an important part of your immune system, and they are made of proteins. These specialized immune proteins recognize bacteria or viruses, bind to the surface of the invader and mark it for removal by other cells of the immune system, according to the Genetics Home Reference. Without antibodies, your body cannot fight off disease, and bacteria would overwhelm your cells. These proteins provide an important defense mechanism that makes your immune system work.
Enzymes
Enzymes are proteins that help make new chemicals. Thousands of these proteins work in your body to produce many different functions and chemicals that are vital to your survival. Specific enzymes are needed for specific reactions to take place. If that enzyme is not available, then a chain reaction of detrimental effects can occur. Enzymes also read DNA to express the genetic code. They break down larger molecules, such as other proteins and carbohydrates, into smaller components that the body can use.
Messengers
Proteins carry messages, in the form of hormones, from one cell to another. Hormones communicate instructions to the entire body. For instance, insulin is a protein-based hormone that responds to high blood sugar and communicates to the body cells to accept the blood sugar into the cells or for the liver to convert the sugar into glycogen, according to the University of Waikato. Proteins also act as messengers within the cell and locally between cells.
Structure
Proteins provide structure for your body. For instance, the proteins collagen and elastin make up the connective tissues in your skin, according to the University of Waikato. The protein actin works in your muscles to help you move, and myosin is also involved in the contractility of the muscle fibers. Proteins lend your muscles strength, durability and contractility, in addition to the chemical reactions they perform in your cells.
Transportation
Proteins bind to other chemicals and nutrients, then transport them to other parts of the body or act as storage receptacles. The protein ferritin binds to iron and transfers it through out the body to a place where it is used, according to the Genetics Home Reference. Hemoglobin, a protein in the blood, carries oxygen from the lungs to the cells, then carries carbon dioxide from the cells back to the lungs. Without this protein, you would suffocate.
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