1.1- Biological Compounds Flashcards
What are organic molecules?
molecules that have a high proportion of carbon and hydrogen atoms
What are inorganic molecules?
a molecule or ion that has no more than one carbon atom
What is an example of an organic compound?
Glucose C6 H12 O6
What are examples of inorganic molecules?
carbon dioxide CO2
water H2O
What are micronutrients? Give examples
minerals needed in minute concentrations
e.g. copper, zinc
What are macronutrients? Give examples
minerals that are needed in small concentrations
e.g. magnesium, iron
What are the main macronutrients?
magnesium
iron
nitrate
phosphate
calcium
What is the biological role of magnesium?
constituent of chlorophyll and therefore essential for photosynthesis
What is the biological role of iron?
constituent of haemoglobin, which transports oxygen in red blood cells
What is the biological role of nitrate?
needed for making nucleotides, including ATP, DNA, RNA
also needed for amino acids formation
What is the biological role of phosphate?
used for making nucleotides
a constituent of phospholipids found in biological membranes
it hardens bones
What is the biological role of calcium?
Hardens bones and teeth
component of plant cell walls
What is the ionic symbol of phosphate?
PO4 (3-)
Why is water a polar molecule?
because of the uneven distribution of charge- the oxygen end has a partial negative side, whereas the hydrogen end has a partial positive side
What does dipole mean?
a polar molecule which has a positive and negative charge which is separated by a very small distance
What type of bond is attracting water molecules together?
hydrogen bonds
What are hydrogen bonds
the force of attraction between a hydrogen atom- partially positive charge
and an oxygen atom- partially negative side
Individually hydrogen bonds are weak and can be easily broken
but together, it requires a lot of energy to break
What are the properties of water?
solvent
high specific heat capacity
cohesion
surface tension
high latent heat of vaporisation
density
How is water a solvent?
substances can dissolve in it because it is charged due to the positive and negative parts of the molecule
What is high specific heat capacity?
large amounts of energy is needed to raise the temperature of water
What is high latent heat of vaporisation?
due to cohesion between the water molecules, large amounts of energy is needed to change water from a liquid to a vapour state
What is surface tension?
cohesions taking place between the junction of water and air
it allows the surface of water to act like a habitat
What is cohesion?
the attraction between water molecules due to the hydrogen bonds which allows water to be transported
(xylem vessels)
What is density of water?
water has a maximum density at 4 degrees
ice is less dense than water because when water freezes it expands making the hydrogen bonds further away from each other