Collagen
Proline/lysine hydroxylation + lysyl-oxidase cross-linking
Collagen is the most abundant protein in the body — the structural rope in skin, tendons, ligaments, blood vessels, and the scaffold of bone. Building it is a two-stage job: vitamin C is the rate-limiting cofactor that hydroxylates proline and lysine (the step that lets collagen fibers hold their triple-helix shape), then copper-dependent lysyl oxidase cross-links those fibers into something strong. Without enough vitamin C the fibers are weak and unstable — the mechanism behind scurvy's bleeding gums and poor wound healing. Adequate protein, supplying the glycine, proline, and lysine, is the raw material the whole pathway depends on.
How your supplements + diet feed this pathway right now — the cofactors driving it, where the gaps are, and your own lab readouts.
The load-bearing nutrients — if these are deficient, this pathway slows down. Click any to see daily targets, food sources, and supplements that supply it.
Nutrients that contribute to this pathway but aren’t the single load-bearing inputs.
Pathways that share a load-bearing cofactor with this one.