The function of a protein is determined by its shape. The shape of a protein is determined by its primary structure (sequence of amino acids). The sequence of amino acids in a protein is determined by the sequence of nucleotides in the gene (DNA) encoding it.
The shape of a protein is determined by the four levels of protein structure: primary, secondary, tertiary, and quaternary. Other chaperon proteins are present in the cell and ensure that a protein folds into its proper shape.
