Protein Deficiency, Starvation and Protein Metabolism

Changes in protein metabolism are central to many of the manifestations of malnutrition, whether they be mild growth retardation, severe stunting and wasting or the metabolic complications of oedema, fatty infiltration of the liver or hypoalbuminaemia. This paper reviews what is known about the effects of malnutrition on whole body protein turnover, and on the regulation of protein metabolism in the two key tissues muscle and liver, since the changes which occur in these tissues can have profound effects on the whole organism.