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MCAT Biology 1 > AO1 > Flashcards

AO1 Flashcards

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0
Q

Is cytosol an aqueous solution?

A

Yes

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1
Q

Most abundant chemical in any living cell?

A

Water

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2
Q

What is the solvent in which most of the reactions in any living cell takes place?

A

Water

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3
Q

Macromolecules in a living cell are broken down by water in a reaction called…

A

hydrolysis

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4
Q

What is the term for nutrients in their “unbroken-down” state?

A

macromolecules

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5
Q

Carbohydrates are broken down into…

A

glucose molecules

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6
Q

nucleic acids are broken down into…

A

nucleotides

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7
Q

proteins are broken down into…

A

amino acids

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8
Q

triglycerides are broken down into…

A

fatty acids

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9
Q

How many g/mol is water?

A

18

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10
Q

Temperature of the human body?

A

37 degrees C (98.6 degrees F)

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11
Q

Why is water, a tiny, lightweight molecule, a liquid in the presence of rather high temperature, rather than vaporize to gas?

A

Hydrogen bonds

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12
Q

hydrophobic means

A

water fearing

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13
Q

hydrophilic means

A

water loving

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14
Q

what properties refer to the polarity of a water molecule?

A

hydrophobic and hydrophilic

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15
Q

water dissolves molecules of what polarity?

A

polar molecules

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16
Q

polar dissolves…

A

polar

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17
Q

nonpolar dissolves…

A

nonpolar

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18
Q

What kind of molecule has one part polar, and another part nonpolar?

A

amphipathic

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19
Q

Fats are lipids but all lipids are/are not fat.

A

are not

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20
Q

Biological molecules with a low solubility in water are called…

A

lipids

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21
Q

6 major groups of lipids…

A 
1 - fatty acids
2 - triglycerides
3 - phospholipids
4 - glycolipids
5 - steroids
6 - terpenes (form of hydrocarbons - includes Vitamin A)
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22
Q

Vitamin A is/ is not fat soluble

A

IS

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23
Q

Structure of a triglyceride…

A

3 carbon chains dangling from a 3 carbon backbone

Each carbon chain attached by an ester group

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24
Q

Add water to the ester bonding the carbon chain to the carbon backbone and it breaks down into an…

A

alcohol and a carboxylic acid

carboxylic acid remains attached to the carbon chain forming a fatty acid

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25
Q

fatty acids are amphipathic. The longer the carbon chain, the less/more important the polar carboxylic region and the less/more water soluble the fatty acid

A

LESS

LESS

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26
Q

Is a fatty acid water soluble or not?

A

Matter of degree. Short chained fatty acids are slightly water soluble.

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27
Q

All carbons in a chain of saturated fatty acids are connected by single/double bonds.

A

single

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28
Q

Unsaturated fatty acids have carbon chains with at least one double/single bond.

A

double

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29
Q

Unsaturated fatty acids have a higher/lower melting point.

A

lower

Hint: Oily peanut butter is unsaturated and is good for you.

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30
Q

What molecule has a 3 carbon backbone, 2 carbon chains attached to backbone by ester group, 3rd backbone carbon has a phosphate group attached

A

Phospholipid

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31
Q

are phospholipids amphipathic?

A

Yes

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32
Q

Cell membranes are mainly made from what type of molecules?

A

Phospholipid

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33
Q

Polar regions of the phospholipid membrane face what direction?

A

The aqueous solution inside and outside of the cell

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34
Q

Nonpolar carbon chains of the phospholipid bilayer membrane face what direction?

A

The interior of the membrane

35
Q

Lollipop or balloon model of the membrane bilayer represents what molecule?

A

phospholipid

36
Q

Glycolipids look like phospholipids but the phosphate group is replaced with…

A

a carbohydrate

37
Q

Steroids have how many rings in its structure?

A

4

38
Q

Steroids are/are not slightly amphipathic

A

Are

39
Q

Lipids are insoluble in water, how do they move through the blood?

A

Carried by lipoproteins, HDLs and LDLs. Forms a phospholipid and protein shell that surrounds the lipid and dissolves in the blood.

40
Q

Long chains of amino acids are…

A

Proteins

41
Q

Chemical structure of an amino acid… ***

A

Carboxylic acid attached to carbon (the alpha carbon because it is the first carbon attached to the carbonyl carbon) and an amine and a side chain attached to the alpha carbon

42
Q

What structures distinguish the 20 kinds of amino acids?

A

Amino acid side chains

43
Q

4 categories of amino acid side chains

A

1) Polar
2) Nonpolar
3) Acidic
4) Basic

44
Q

Basic amino acid side chain acronym = H. A. L.

A

Histidine
Arginine
Lysine

45
Q

Acidic amino acids…

A

Aspartic acid

Glutamic acid

46
Q

Nonpolar amino acids… V.I.P. M.A.L.T. Ph. Glycine

A 
Valine
Isoleucine
Proline
Methionine
Alanine
Leucine
Tryptophan
Phenylalanine
Glycine
47
Q

Amino acids that the human body cannot produce in sufficient quantities…

A

Essential amino acids

48
Q

How many amino acids are essential to the human body?

A

About half, between 8 and 11, depends on how you look at it because some amino acids can be produced from others (i.e. Tyrosine can be produced from Phenylalanine)

49
Q

How amino acids make up a protein… 4 levels of structure

A

1) Primary
2) Secondary
3) Tertiary
4) Quaternary

50
Q

Primary structure of protein…

A

Number and sequence of amino acids, including locations of disulfide bonds between cysteines

51
Q

String of amino acids is called…

A

polypeptide (series of peptide bonds)

52
Q

Secondary structure of a protein refers to…

A

twisting of the alpha helix OR
folding of beta pleated sheets

Secondary structure is held together by HYDROGEN BONDS between amine of one amino acid residue, and the carbonyl oxygen of another residue

53
Q

Amino acid incorporated into the peptide chain is called…

A

residue

54
Q

Tertiary structure is…

A

The bending of the secondary structure (twisted alpha helix or beta pleated sheets) into a pretzel shape or glob

55
Q

What kind of proteins have tertiary and quaternary structure?

A

Globular (Many structural proteins don’t)

56
Q

Why does the string of amino acids bend up into a pretzel shape?

A

5 forces creating tertiary structure:

1) covalent disulfide bonding (location of disulfide bonds is primary structure because it deals with the order of amino acids, THE DISULFIDE BOND ITSELF creates tertiary structure) between cysteine residues
2) hydrogen bonds (also creates secondary structure)
3) electrostatic forces between ionic portions of the residues (mostly between acidic and basic side chains)
4) hydrophobic side chains turning away from the aqueous solution of the cell AND hydrophilic side chains turning toward the cytosol
5) Weak van der waals forces - portions of the molecule have dipoles or instantaneous dipoles

57
Q

Quaternary structure of a protein is…

A

When 2 or more of pretzel-like polypeptides are held together by the same five forces that hold together the tertiary structure.

Each polypeptide of the quaternary structure is a “subunit”

58
Q

Adding heat or chemicals to disrupt the five forces of protein structure is called?

A

Denature

59
Q

What levels of protein structure is disrupted during the denaturization process?

A

Tertiary and Quaternary (same 5 forces are disrupted), Secondary (hydrogen bonds disrupted)

60
Q

Why isn’t primary structure disrupted by denaturization?

A

Primary structure of protein is held together by covalent bonds, which are strong.

61
Q

Glycoproteins are …

A

proteins with carbohydrates attached

62
Q

proteoglycans are…

A

carbohydrates with protein portions attached

63
Q

Cytochromes are…

A

proteins that require non-proteinaceous portions to function

64
Q

proteins with non-proteinaceous groups are called…

A

conjugated proteins

65
Q

carbohydrates are made of …

A

carbon and water

66
Q

empirical formula for any carbohydrate is…

A

CH2O

67
Q

Most important carbohydrate for the MCAT???

A

6 carbon carbohydrate glucose

68
Q

What carbohydrate is an aldehyde with 4 chiral carbons?

A

Glucose

69
Q

Glucose in a fischer projection… direction of hydroxyl groups on chiral carbons?

A

right, left, right, right

70
Q

What is a fischer projection?

A

Carbons are drawn in a vertical column.

71
Q

Glucose also forms a 6-membered ring where one of the ring members is…

A

Oxygen

72
Q

Carbons of glucose in a 6-membered ring are numbered CW/CCW starting to the right of the oxygen.

A

Clockwise

73
Q

Carbon to the right of the oxygen in the 6-membered ring of glucose is called…

A

anomeric carbon

74
Q

When the hydroxyl group on the anomeric carbon of glucose points up in the same direction of the methyl group, the glucose molecule is referred to as the…

A

beta anomer

75
Q

When the hydroxyl group on the anomeric carbon of glucose points down in the opposite direction of the methyl group, the glucose molecule is referred to as the…

A

alpha anomer

76
Q

In animals, glucose is stored in long carbohydrate chains called…

A

glycogen

77
Q

In glycogen, each glucose molecule is attached to the next via an…

A

alpha linkage

78
Q

Plants store their carbohydrate in the form of…

A

starch

79
Q

In starch, glucose molecules are connected by what kind of linkages?

A

alpha

80
Q

Plant cell walls are made from the carbohydrate called…

A

cellulose

81
Q

what type of linkages does cellulose contain?

A

beta

82
Q

Animals have the enzymes to digest what type of linkages in carbohydrates?

A

alpha linkages, not beta linkages

83
Q

what molecule is added to glycogen, starch, and even cellulose in order to break of individual glucose molecules?

A

Water (it’s hydrolysis)

84
Q

What type of macromolecule include RNA and DNA?

A

nucleic acids

MCAT Biology 1 (1 decks)

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