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Biology - OCR A > 2.2 - Biological Molecules > Flashcards

2.2 - Biological Molecules Flashcards

1
Q

What is a monomer?

A

An individuel molecule that has the ability to bond with other molecules

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2
Q

What is a polymer?

A

Two or mor monomers bonded together

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3
Q

What is a carbohydrate monomer called?

A

Monosaccharides

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4
Q

What is the general formula for a monosaccharide?

A

CnH2nOn

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5
Q

How are monosaccharides named?

A

They are named based off of the number of carbon atoms

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6
Q

What are the 2 types of glucose?

A
  • Alpha glucose
  • Beta glucose
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7
Q

What is the structure of alpha glucose?

A
  • Hexose
  • C6H12O6
  • OH is below the H (carbon 1)
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8
Q

What is the structure of beta glucose?

A
  • Hexose
  • C6H12O6
  • OH above the H
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9
Q

What are alpha and beta glucose examples of?

A

Isomers

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10
Q

What is an isomer?

A

Things that have the same chemical formula but a different general structure

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11
Q

What reaction causes alpha glucose to bond?

A

It bonds through a condensation reaction

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12
Q

What does a condensation reaction produces?

A
  • A glycosidic bond (1-4)
  • Water
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13
Q

How is sucrose produced?

A

Alpha glucose and fructose bonding

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14
Q

How is lactose produced?

A

Galactose and alpha glucose bonding

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15
Q

How is cellobiose produced?

A

2 beta glucose molecules bonding

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16
Q

How is maltose produced?

A

2 beta glucose molecules bonding

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17
Q

What type of bond is a glycosidic bond?

A

Covalent bond

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18
Q

How is a glycosidic bond broken?

A

A hydrolysis reaction

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19
Q

How does a hydrolysis reaction work?

A

It breaks the bond by adding a water molecule back in

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20
Q

What elements are carbohydrates made from?

A
  • Carbon
  • Hydrogen
  • Oxygen
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21
Q

What elements are lipids made from?

A
  • Carbon
  • Hydrogen
  • Oxygen
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22
Q

What elements are proteins made from?

A
  • Carbon
  • Hydrogen
  • Oxygen
  • Nitrogen
  • Sulfur
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23
Q

What elements are nucleic acids made from?

A
  • Carbon
  • Hydrogen
  • Oxygen
  • Nitrogen
  • Phosphoru
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24
Q

What are calcium ions involved in?

A
  • Muscle contraction
  • Nerve impulse transition
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25
Q

What are sodium ions involved in?

A
  • Co-transport
  • Reabsorption of water in the kidney
  • Nerve impulse transmission
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26
Q

What are potassium ions involved in?

A
  • Stomatal opening
  • Nerve impulse
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27
Q

What are hydrogen ions involved in?

A
  • Chemiosmosis
  • pH determination
  • Catalyst for reactions
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28
Q

What are ammonium ions used in?

A
  • Nitrogen cycle, where bacteria converts them into nitrate ions
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29
Q

What are nitrate ions involved in?

A
  • Mineral absorption by plants so they can make amino acids
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30
Q

What are hydrocarbonate ions used in?

A

Maintaining the pH of the blood

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31
Q

What are chloride ions used in?

A

Balancing the positive charge of sodium and potassium ions in cells

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32
Q

What are phosphate ions used in?

A

The formation of:
- Phospholipids
- Nucleic acids
- ATP

They are also used in making bones

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33
Q

Why is water polar

A

The oxygen is slightly negative and the hydrogens are slightly negative

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34
Q

What do hydrogen bonds form between?

A

The oxygen from on molecule and the hydrogen from another

35
Q

How strong are hydrogen bonds?

A

Individually they are quite weak, but lots of hydrogen bonds are really strong

36
Q

Why is water important as a solvent?

A

It allows it to interact with other polar molecules pulling them apart because of the molecules been slightly charged they attract oppositely charge molecules

37
Q

Why is water important as a transport medium?

A

They are easy to transport dissolved substances around plants and animals because they are cohesive

38
Q

Why is water important as a cooler?

A
  • It had a high specific heat capacity because it requires a lot of energy to break the hydrogen bonds
  • It had a high latent heat of vaporisation due to the amount of energy required to turn it into a gas
39
Q

Why is water important as a habitat?

A
  • It buffers the temp so it provides a stable environment
  • The cohesion creates surface tension so smaller invertebrates are able to move and live on the surface
  • Ice is less dense due to the hydrogen bonds so it is able to float on top of the water
40
Q

Why are non-polar molecules not able to dissolve in water?

A

They are hydrophobic so they repel the water

41
Q

What is water cohesion?

A

Water molecules sticking together by hydrogen bonds

42
Q

Why is water having a high specific heat capacity an advantage?

A

The internal temperatures of plants and animals should remain relatively constant, so enzymes are less likely to denature

43
Q

What are 3 types of monomers?

A

Glucose, amino acid and a nucleotide

44
Q

What polymers can glucose form?

A

Starch, cellulose and glycogen

45
Q

What polymer does an amino acid form?

46
Q

What polymers does a nucleotide form?

A

DNA and RNA

47
Q

What is a disaccharide?

A

2 monosaccharides bonded together by a glycosidic bond

48
Q

How is maltose formed?

A

Glucose and glucose

49
Q

How does a condensation reaction work?

A

Joining two molecules together by removing water

50
Q

What is the monomer that starch is made from?

A

Alpha glucose

51
Q

What bond forms in amylose?

A

1-4 glycosidic

52
Q

What bond forms in amylopectin?

A

1-4 and 1-6 glycosidic

53
Q

What is the function of starch?

A

Stores glucose in plant cells such as chloroplasts

54
Q

What is the structure of amylose?

A

An unbranched helix

55
Q

What is the structure of amylopectin?

A

A branched molecule

56
Q

How does amyloses structure lead to the function?

A
  • The helix can compact and fit a lot of glucose in small spaces
  • Insoluble so it won’t affect the water potential
57
Q

How does the structure of amylopectin lead to its function?

A
  • The branched structure increases the surface area for rapid hydrolysis
  • Insoluble so it won’t affect the water potential
58
Q

What is the monomer of cellulose?

A

Beta glucose

59
Q

What bond forms in cellulose?

A

1-4 glycosidic

60
Q

What is the function of cellulose?

A

Structural strength for cell walls in the plant

61
Q

What is the structure of cellulose?

A

Polymers form long straight chains that are held in parallel by hydrogen bonds to form fibrils, macro fibrils combine to form cellulose fibre

62
Q

How does the structure of cellulose lead to its function?

A
  • Many hydrogen bonds provide a collective strength
  • Insoluble so it won’t affect the water potential
63
Q

What is the monomer of glycogen?

A

Alpha glucose

64
Q

What bonds form in glycogen?

A

1-4 and 1-6 glycosidic

65
Q

What is the function of glycogen?

A

Store glucose in animals, mainly the muscles and liver

66
Q

What is the structure of glycogen?

A

A highly branched molecule

67
Q

How does the structure of glycogen lead to its function?

A
  • The branched structure increases the surface area for rapid hydrolysis
  • Insoluble so it does not affect water potential
68
Q

What type of molecule are lipids?

A

Macromolecules

69
Q

What are 4 features of lipids?

A
  • Non-polar molecules
  • Insoluble in water
  • Dissolve in organic solvents such as ethanol
  • Hydrophobic
70
Q

What is the structure of a lipid?

A

Fatty acids and glycerol

71
Q

How a triglycerides formed?

A

Condensation reaction between 1 molecule of glycerol and 3 molecules of fatty acids

72
Q

What bond is formed when making a triglyceride?

A

3 ester bond

73
Q

What is a saturated fatty acid?

A

The hydrocarbon chains only have single bonds between the carbons

74
Q

What is an unsaturated fatty acid?

A

The hydrocarbon chain consists of at least one double bond between carbons

75
Q

What are the properties of triglycerides?

A
  • Can transfer energy due to the large ratio of energy storing carbon-hydrogen bonds compared to the number of carbon atoms
  • Act as a metabolic water source because they can release water when oxidised
  • Insoluble so they won’t affect osmosis
  • Low in mass so don’t affect the overall mass
76
Q

What is the structure of phospholipids?

A

Glycerol molecule and a phosphate group in the head and 2 fatty acid chains

77
Q

What are the properties of phospholipids?

A
  • The head it hydrophilic so they attract water
  • The tail is hydrophobic so it repels water
  • Can form a phospholipid bilayer (membrane structure)
78
Q

What is the structure of cholesterol?

A

4 carbon rings and a hydroxyl at one end

79
Q

What impact does cholesterol have on a cell membrane?

A

Helps to control the movement of molecules across the membrane by:
- At high temperature it reduces fluidity
- At low temperatures it increases fluidit

80
Q

What are the 4 levels of proteins?

A

Primary, secondary, tertiary and quaternary structure

81
Q

What is the primary structure of a protein?

A

The order of the amino acids in a polypeptide chain

82
Q

What is the secondary structure of a protein?

A

The further folding of an amino acid chain to form with an alpha helix of a beta pleated sheet. Hydrogens bonds hold the secondary structure together

83
Q

What is the tertiary structure of a protein?

A

The further folding to form a 3D structure. The structure is held in place by:
- Hydrophobic and hydrophilic interactions
- Hydrogen bonds (weak)
- Ionic bonds (stronger bonds forming between the R-groups)
- Disulphide bridges (strong covalent bonds between sulphur atoms)

84
Q

What is the quaternary structure of a protein?

A

A protein made up of multiple polypeptide chains, has a prosthetic group

Biology - OCR A (25 decks)

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