Protein degradation is a process in which proteins in the cell are broken down and recycled by the cell. This process is essential for maintaining cellular homeostasis, as it removes damaged or unwanted proteins, and regulates protein levels within the cell. Protein degradation is carried out by specialized enzymes called proteases, which cleave proteins into smaller peptides or amino acids. Dysregulation of protein degradation has been implicated in various diseases, including cancer, neurodegenerative disorders, and autoimmune diseases. Studying protein degradation is important for understanding protein turnover and function within cells, as well as developing new therapeutic strategies for treating diseases associated with defects in protein degradation pathways.