Variation in how animals and bacteria use heme reveals potential target for new antibiotics
The Impossible Whopper pictured at a Burger King restaurant in Columbus, Georgia. Burger King started offering this burger featuring a patty made with heme in August 2019. (Image: Shutterstock)
May 11, 2021
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It took an unlikely food innovation — earth-friendly vegetarian patties, made to taste and “bleed” like the familiar meaty ones — to make people aware of heme.
But heme is an essential part of proteins found in most life forms, from tiny bacteria to soy plants to the human body. Heme plays a crucial role in supplying cells with the energy needed to carry out chemical reactions.