Final answer:
Post-translational modifications can affect protein function by influencing protein activity, stability, and degradation through processes like phosphorylation, thus impacting cellular functions and potentially leading to diseases.
Step-by-step explanation:
Post-translational modifications of proteins can affect c) Protein function. These modifications, which include phosphorylation, acetylation, methylation, and ubiquitination, can significantly influence the behavior of proteins within the cell. Phosphorylation can impact various aspects of protein activity, such as altering translation, RNA shuttling, and RNA stability, which in turn affects the amount of protein produced, its function, or how long it resides within the cell.
For example, modifications of proteins that are part of the protein initiator complex can prevent proper translation from occurring. Once synthesized, a protein’s post-translational modifications can greatly impact its stability, degradation, or function, leading to alterations in cellular processes and can even be involved in the development of diseases like cancer when they alter critical functions like those of the p53 protein.