What type of proteins do genes typically encode besides structural proteins?

Genes are responsible for encoding a variety of proteins, and one primary type produced is functional proteins, which include enzymes. Enzymes are biological catalysts that speed up chemical reactions within cells, playing crucial roles in metabolic pathways. This encompasses processes such as digestion, energy production, and the synthesis of DNA and other essential molecules.

While genes can also encode membrane proteins, which are involved in transport and signaling, and storage proteins, which serve as a nutrient reserve, enzymes are particularly notable for their dynamic functionality and involvement in biochemical reactions, distinguishing them from more static structural roles. Carbohydrate chains, on the other hand, are not proteins but rather polysaccharides, highlighting why they do not fit within the category of proteins encoded by genes.

Thus, highlighting functional proteins such as enzymes as the primary focus illustrates the wide-ranging roles that proteins encoded by genes play beyond mere structural support.