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9. Preventing Damage

Because pepsin is stable in many environments, it can pose a threat to itself if there are no other proteins present. The enzyme requires inhibition so that it does not immediately attempt to destroy itself. This is partially why it begins as pepsinogen. Additionally, it undergoes feedback inhibition, a phenomenon where the output of a process also inhibits the beginning of the process. In the case of pepsin, a product of protein digestion inhibits it and causes it to slow down.

damage pepsin

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