Carbon and Molecular Diversity of Life Flashcards
Organic Chemistry
the study of compounds that contain bonds between carbon atoms
Inorganic Chemistry
the study of all other compounds that do not include carbon
Why is carbon so important?
1) Carbon has four valence electrons -> it can form strong covalent bonds with many other elements.
2) Carbon can bond with carbon
3) Carbon is extremely versatile and can bond in many ways and in many shapes
4) Carbon makes up all life
Macromolecule
(very big polymer) Giant molecules, which are made up of thousands of smaller molecules. Make up most organic compounds on living cells. They are sorted into groups by chemical compounds.
How are macromolecules formed?
through polymerization
What is polymerization?
the process by which smaller compounds are joined toegther to make larger ones
Smaller compounds that join together to form larger ones are called….
monomers
What do monomers form?
polymers
The monomers in a polymer must always be identical.
(True or False)
False; they can be different or identical
How many major groups are the macromolecules sorted into?
4
What are the major groups that macromolecules are sorted into?
Carbohydrates, lipids, nucleic acids, and proteins
What are carbohydrates made of?
carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen atoms usually in a ratio of 1:2:1
(Ex: [CH2O]n) {little n is a variable that represents a number between 3-8, which you can plug into the 1:2:1 ratio}
What is the purpose of carbohydrates?
Carbohydrates are the secondary source of energy of living things; some organisms (such as plants) use them for structural purposes; some use for storage of energy
What are the two categories of carbohydrates?
Simple sugars and complex carbohydrates
How are carbohydrates formed?
Through dehydration synthesis
What are simple sugars?
monosaccharides such as glucose, galactose, fructose, etc.
Monosaccharides
single sugar molecules
(Ex: Glucose)
Disaccharides
compound made by 2 simple sugars
(Ex: sucrose)
What are complex carbohydrates?
(aka polysaccharides) large macromolecules formed from Monosaccharides
Examples of complex carbohydrates
starch, glycogen, cellulose
Starch
formed when glucose molecules join together in long chains
Isomer
Elements with the same number/type of atoms, but different chemical formulas –> same molecular formula, diff structure
Glycogen
(aka animal starch) long chains of glucose where animals store excess sugar.
Cellulose
structural polysaccharides that give plants their strength and rigidity
What are lipids
a large and varied group of biological molecules that is usually not soluble in water. l only macromolecule not made of monomers l fat molecule l can be used to store energy and are an important part of membranes, waterproof coverings, fats, oils,and waxes
How are lipids formed?
Through dehydration synthesis
What are lipids made of?
Made of glycerol and fatty acids (carbon and hydrogen atoms)
Saturated
If there is a maximum number of hydrogen atoms in a lipid –> these lipids are solid at room temperature and are common in land animals
Unsaturated
If there is one carbon-carbon bound in a fatty acid –> these lipids are liquid at room temperature because of the carbon-carbon double bond –> most common in aquatic animals
What is more healthy saturated or unsaturated fats?
Unsaturated fats
Polyunsatured
If there is more than one carbon carbon double-bond
Why do lipids not dissolve in water?
They are non polar
Nucleic Acids
(aka polynucleotides) macromolecules that store and transmit hereditary information
What are nucleic acids made of?
Contain hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, carbon, and phosphorus –> made from monomers called nucleotides (which in turn consists of three parts)
What are the three different parts of a nucleotide?
Phosphate Group, 5-carbon sugar, and nitrogenous base
How are nucleic acids formed?
when nucleotides covalently bond
How many types of nucleic acids are there?
2
What are the different types of nucleic acids?
RNA (ribonucleic acids) and DNA (deoxyribonucleic acids)
How are nucleic acids formed?
Through dehydration synthesis
What are the nitrogenous bonds held together by?
Hydrogen Bonds
Proteins
functional macromolecules that contain nitrogen, carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen (one of the most diverse kind of macromolecules)
What are proteins made of?
monomers –> amino acids
amino acids assembled into polypepdite chains
Amino Acids Structure
compounds with an amino group (-NH2) on one end, a carboxyl group (-COOH) on the other end, a carbon atom in the center, a hydrogen atom on one side, and an R-group on the other
How are amino acids bonded together?
covalently bonded through bonds called pepdite bonds
Polypepdite
formed when MANY amino acids pepdite bond
What do proteins do?
Some proteins control the rate of reactions and regulate cell processes; others form important cellular structures; others transport substances into or out of cells to help or fight disease
More than ___ different amino acids are found in nature
20
Examples of amino acids found in nature
enzymes, hormones
How are the polypepdite chains in proteins assembled?
According to instructions in DNA
How many levels of organization does an amino acid have?
4
What is the first level of structure of an amino acid?
1) Primary - Sequence of amino acids
How many ways can polypepdite chains coil/fold and what are they?
2: in a zig-zag way and in curly way
The ___ of an amino acid always stays the same while the ___ changes
backbone (which consists of the carboxyl group, amino group, carbon atom, and hydogen atom); R-Group
All amino acids are identical except for at the ___
R -Group (which all are unique because they can be polar, nonpolar, acidic, basic, etc.)
What causes amino acids ability to bond?
Any amino acid can form to any carboxyl group because they are all the same
How are amino acids formed?
Through dehydration synthesis
Dehydration Synthesis
to put together macromolecules by losing water. This is possible because by losing H20 you are linking two monomers together
(look at model in notebook)
Hydrolysis (Digestion)
to separate with the addition of water. This is possible because when water is added to a large organic molecule, one monomer will take the OH- and the other will take the H+, creating two monomers.
Mass number
total number of protons and neutrons in nucleus
Difference between deoxyribose and ribose
deoxy has one less oxygen molecule
DNA bases
A G C T
RNA bases
A G C U
What is the main function of proteins?
they don’t have one
Carbohydrates molecules
C H O
Lipids molecules
C H O
Proteins molecules
C H O N
Nucleic Acids molecules
C H O N P
Organic compounds
(most of the) chemical compounds in living organisms which have a carbon skeleton surrounded by H+ and other elements
Inorganic Compounds
molecules that do not include Carbon
Carbohydrate ratio
1:2:1
C:H:O
Carb formula
CnH2nOn or (CH2O)n
Saccharide means
sugar
Mono, di, poly refers to what
of sugars
How many classes of organic compounds are there
4
What are the 4 classes of organic compounds
1) Nucleic Acids
2) Lipids
3) Carbohydrates
4) Proteins
Polymers
building blocks
Monomers
individual building blocks of polymers
Examples of monosaccharides
glucose
fructose
galactose
ribose
deoxyribose
Fructose
common sugar in fruits
glucose
product of cellular respiration; important for energy; etc.
Fructose and Glucose chemical structures
Rings or straight
How are glucose and fructose similar
they are isomers, so they have the same chemical formula but different structures
(main difference is functional groups)
What happens when two monosaccharides join together
one of the OH bonds on one monosaccharide adds to the H of the other monosaccharide, forming water and a dissacharide
Examples of dissacharides
maltose
sucrose
lactose
Glycosidic Linkage
the bond formed when two monosaccharides undergo dehydration synthesis and water and a disaccharide are formed (only for carbs)
Polysaccharides consist of what
branched or unbranched chains of monosaccharides
Examples of polysaccharides
starch
cellulose
glycogen
Chitin
glycogen and starch main purpose
storage molecules (store sugar)
Polysaccharide
repeated units of monosaccharides
Monosaccharides
the simplest units of carbohydrates and the simplest form of sugar
Chitin
structural molecule in the walls of fungus and in the exoskeleton of arthropods
Amino Acid
organic molecules that serve as the building blocks of proteins
R group aka
side chain
In what ways can the R groups of amino acids be different
they can differ in composition, polarity, charge, and shape
What are the different shapes of the R group
long chain
short chain
ring
What are the different types of amino acids
hydrophobic
hydrophilic
ionic
What is the polarity and charge of hydrophobic amino acids
non polar
neutral
What is the polarity and charge of hydrophilic amino acids
polar
neutral
What is the polarity and charge of ionic amino acids
polar
charged
Dipeptide
when two amino acids join and the carboxyl group of one amino acid combines with the amino group of another amino acid through dehydration synthesis
What is the second level of structure of an amino acid
2) Secondary - Folding/coiling of the polypepdite chain
Secondary Structures
shapes formed in the second level of structure of an amino acid
coil (alpha helix)
zigzagging pattern (beta-pleated sheets)
What is the third level of structure of the amino acid
3)Tertiary - Complete, 3-dimensional arrangement of the polypepdite chain
Example of amino acid quartenary structure
hemoglobin
What is the fourth level of structure of the amino acid
4) Quaternary - (only for proteins with more than one chain) way different polypepdites are arranged in respect to one another
Hydrophobic amino acids and regions are usually found on the ___ (interior/exterior) of proteins
interior
Hydrophylic amino acids and regions of the peptide chain are usually found on the ___ (interior/exterior) of proteins
exterior
Hemologibin is formed when ___ separate polypetide chains interact with each other
4
Chaperone proteins
proteins that help other proteins fold properly and efficiently
Examples of lipids
steroids
phospholipids
triglycerides
cholesterol
Cholesterol jobs
increase membrane fluidity (when cold), holds membrane together (when hot), makes hormones, and Vitamin D
What is the bond that links lipids
ester bonds
Stanley Miller Experiment
concluded that complex molecules such as amino acids, hydrocarbons, etc. can be made from inorganic materials (try to replicate first life) inorganic molecules can make organic molecules because they found amino acids
Valence
the number of e- atoms will share when bonding
Hydrocarbon
compounds made by H and C (organic molecules)
Valence by H
1
Valence of oxygen
2
Valence of nitrogen
3
Valence of carbon
4
Structural Formula
shows atoms and their bonds in a molecule
What are the different types of isomers
structural
geometric
enantiomer
Structural Isomer
same molecular formula diff covalent arrangements
Example of structural isomer
same molecular formula but one is branched and the other one is straight
Geometric Isomer
carbons have covalent bonds to the same atoms, but diff spatial arrangements bc of double bond (COILS in the models)
Types of geometric isomers
cis and trans
Cis geometric isomers
the same atoms are bonded to the same side of the double bond on the bow tie structure
trans geometric isomers
the same atoms are bonded on opposite sides of the double bond in the bow tie structure
Enantiomer
isomers that are mirror images of each other and differ in shape because of an asymmetric carbon
** imagine ball and stick model = like a hand
Asymmetric Carbon
carbon atom that is bonded to four different types of atoms or groups of atoms
Functional Groups
chemical groups that are responsible for specific chemical reactions
How many biological functional molecules are there and what are they
7
hydroxyl, carbonyl, carboxyl, amino, sulfhydryl, phosphate, methyl
Hydroxyl group
recognize from (-OH), polar bc EN O2 helps dissolve sugar
Carbonyl group
sugars with ketone groups; there are two types: ketose and aldose recognize by ( C=O)
Ketose
the carbonyl group is anywhere but the end of the structural formula of the sugar
Aldose
sugars with aldehydes are called aldoses and their carbonyl group is always on the end of the structural formula
Carboxyl group
acts as an acid bc donates H+; polar bond between O and H (recognize bc -COOH)
Amino group
acts as an acid bc accepts H+ from surrounding solution (recognize by -NH2)
Sulfhydryl group
2 SH groups reach to form a cross link to stabilize protein structure (recognize from -SH)
Phosphate group
gives neg charge to compounds + release energy (recognize bc -OPO3 -2)
Methyl group
affects gene expression when on DNS or on proteins bound to DNA, affect shape and function of sex hormones (recognize from -CH3)
Carb Ratio
1 : 2 : 1
C H O
Carb formula
CnH2nOn or (CH2O)n
Glucose, fructose, galactose, ribose are related to each other how
isomers of each othr
What elements are found in lipids
CHO
What elements are found in carbs
CHO
What elements are founds in nucleic acids
CHONP
What elements are found in proteins
CHONS
What base pairs go together for DNA
A and T
C and G
In carbs what do the prefixes mono, di, and poly refer to
the number of sugars
Saccharide means
sugar
Purpose of polysaccharides
storage and structure – to be broken down for energy
Examples of polysaccharides
starch, cellulose, glycogen, chitin
Dipeptide
when 2 amino acids bond through a peptide bond
