Chapter 2: Biological molecules Flashcards
what are the two types of chemical compounds
inorganic compounds and organic compounds
what are inorganic compounds
- from rocks and mineral deposits
- e.g. Na+, K+, Mg2+
what are organic compounds
- formed by organisms
- C is the basic element
- C, H, O, N, P, S
- C atoms join by covalent bond to form chains or rings
- chains and rings as the C-skeleton of organic molecules
what are monomers
- relatively simple molecule
- used as a basic building block for the synthesis of a polymer
- n(monomer) joins up polymer usually by condensation reactions (H2O will come out)
what are polymers
- a giant molecule
- made from many similar repeating subunits (monomers)
- joined together in a chain
- macromolecule = a very large biological molecule such as polysaccharide, protein,nucleic acid
what is the basic unit/monomer of carbohydrate
monosaccharide
whatis the linkage of carbohydrates
glycosidic bond
what is the macromolecule of carbohydrate
polysaccharide
what is the basic unit/monomer of lipids
fatty acids and glycerol
what is the linkage of lipids
ester bond
what is the macromolecule/polymer of lipids
lipids do not reach this level
what is the basic unit (monomer) of proteins
amino acids
what is the linkage of proteins
peptide bonds
what is the macromolecule/polymer of proteins
polypeptides
what is the basic unit (monomer) of nucleic acid
nucleotide
what is the linkage of nucleic acid
phosphodiester bond
what is the macromolecule (polymer) of nucleotides
nucleic acids (DNA, RNA)
what are carbohydrates
- made of C, H, O where H:O ratio 2:1, same as H20
- general formula= Cx(H2O) y
- hydrate of carbon
- two forms:sugar and polysaccharide
what are sugars
- in mono and disaccharide form
- sweet and soluble
- triose (made of 3 carbons)
- tetrose (made of 4carbons)
- pentose (made of 5 carbons)
- hexose (made of 6 carbons)
what are polysaccharides
- not sweet, insoluble
- e.g. starch, glycogen, cellulose
what is the structure of a glucose molecule
- made up of 6 carbon atoms
- each carbon (C2 to C6) has a -H and -OH attached to it
- C1 is part of the functional group (carbonyl group)
- the carbon atom is numbered starting from #1 for the ‘C’carbon nearest to the functional group
- form2 rings : alpha and beta
what is a functional group
a specific group of atoms within an organic molecule that gives the molecule its specific property
what are the two forms that starch exist in
- amylose
- amylopectin
what is the structure of amylose molecule
- unbranched
- glucose residues linked by a-1,4-glycosidic bond
- amylose chains coil up in 3D form as the glycosidic bonds are not straight/180 deg to each other
what is the structure of amylopectin molecule
- branched (branches to main chain glycogen)
- in the main chain, residues are linked by a-1,4-glycosidic bond
- in the branch chain (at the branching point between the branch chain and the main chain) they are linked by a-1,6-glycosidic bond
what are glucose residues
once glucose monomers are attached to form a polymer, its calleda glucose residue
what are the properties/characteristics of glycogen
- similar to amylopectin but its highly branched
- the chains and branches can fold into compact form (takes up less space)
- glycogen molecules clump together to form granules (liver and muscle cells)
what is the function of starch and glycogen
- food and energy storage compound
- starch in plants and seeds
- glycogen in animals and many fungi
why is starch and glycogen used for food and energy storage
- they are insoluble in water (prevents lysis by osmosis)
- does not easily react with water soluble compounds in the cell, while glucose is a reactive molecule
- compact and occupies less space
- easily converted back to glucose when needed (7 terminal glucose residues can be removed at a time, one per branch)
what is the terminal glucose residue
the last glucose in a chain (1st to be removed) is called the terminal glucose residue
what is the structure of cellulose molecules
- made up of Beta glucose subunits
- one beta molecule needs to be rotated 180 deg for the OH groups to line up alongside to form a glycosidic bond
- B-1,4-glycosidic bond
- 10000 glucose residues per chain
- unbranched chain, can stack up parallel to each other bound by intramolecular and intermolecular hydrogen bonds
what are the properties/characteristics of cellulose?
- the most abundant organic molecule because presence in cell wall
- has a slow breakdown rate
- has a high tensile strength = difficult to break by pulling on each end
what is delta charge of atoms
slightly charged (+/-) attraction due to uneven electron distribution
what are hydrogen bonds
-a relatively weak bond, formed between the delta +H of with any one of the three types of delta - atoms -O, -N, -F
what is a dipole?
-the unequal sharing of electrons/distribution of charge between two atoms in a molecule is called a dipole
what are the properties o polar molecules
-molecules with dipole are polar
-polar molecules are hydrophillic (water loving) because they attract H2O
molecules to form hydrogen bonds with them
why do cellulose fibres have high tensile strength
- because glucose molecules have many intermolecular and intramolecular hydrogen bonds due to the many -OH groups and 1 -O-
- because of the building up/structure of cellulose fibres (specify)
what is the building up/structure of cellulose fibres
60-70 cellulose molecules-> join to form microfibril-> join to form cellulose fibre-> join to form cell wall
why is the cell wall strong
cellulose fibres are arranged in different orientation in primary wall and secondary wall layers
-this gives the cell wall its rigid property that contributes to its function
what are the properties/characteristics of lipids
- a diverse class of organic compounds
- insoluble in H2O but soluble in organic solvents (e.g. chloroform,acetone, ether)
- consists of C, H, O where the ratio of H:O is never 2:1 (never has water molecule)
- includes tryglycerides, phospholipids, steroids etc.
what are tryglycerides
- a type of lipid formed when 3 fatty acids combine with a glycerol with an ester bond (-COO-)
- it is produced by a condensation reaction, releasing 3H20 in the process
what are fatty acids made up of
fatty acids = acid head +hydrocarbon tail
what are the acid heads that fatty acids are made up of
- (-COOH)
- carbonyl group
- acidic group
- hydrophillic
what are the hydrocarbon tails fatty acids are made up of
- formula CnH2n+1 (represented by letter ‘r’)
- fatty acid tail
- variable in length (number of C) but usually 15-17C atoms
- if more than 4C atoms, the tail is hydrophobic
- can be saturated (singlebonds) or unsaturated (double bonds) (see diagram)
what is the difference in structure (chains) between saturated fat and unsaturated fat
- saturated fats are straight chains
- unsaturated fats have a kink/backwards twist at each double bond
what are the two types of double bonds
-cis form (hydrogen atom on same side of chain)
-trans form (hydrogen atoms on opposite sides of chain)
(see diagram)
what are the properties/characteristics of saturated fatty acid chains
- straight chains
- highly ordered parallel packing
what are the properties/characteristics of unsaturated ftty acid chains
- are between saturated fatty acid chains
- double bonds disrupt the close packing of fatty acids
- this is because of the kinks
what are the properties/characteristics of tryglycerides
- come in two forms: oils and fats
- both are non polar (water insouble)
- both float in water as they are less dense than the water
- rich energy source
- lighter storage compound than carbohydrates and proteins for the same amount of energy released on oxidation
what is the difference between the two forms of tryglyceride
Oils:
- liquid at rtp
- more unsaturated bonds
- lower melting point
Fats:
- solid at rtp
- more saturated bonds
- higher melting point
why are tryglycerides a rich energy source
- higher calorific value than carbohydrates and CHONs (proteins)
- energy of lipids is 2x the energy of carbohydrates per unit mass
- this is because of more C-H bonds/more H:O ratio in the lipids
- -H can be further oxidised to release energy
what are the functions of tryglycerides in plants
- energy storage compounds
- found in seed, fruits and chloroplasts (as lipid droplets)
- e.g. olive oil, peanut oil, corn oil
where are tryglycerides found in animals
- found in adipose tissue
- made of fat cells
- cels are filled up until nucleus is pushed to the side against the cell membrane
what are the functions of tryglycerides in animals
- energy storage for hibernation
- thermal and electrical insulation
- blubber
- H2O source
- protection of internal organs
what is the function of blubber
help sea mammals to float (buoyancy)and provide thermal insulation
how does H2O source help animals
fat stored in desert kangaroo rat and humps of camel an be oxidised in respiration to form H2O
what is the benedict’s test
the test for reducing sugars (eg. glucose, maltose, fructose)
why/how does benedicts solution indicate the presence of reducing sugars
the functional group Aldehyde (RCOH) can reduce Cu2+ to Cu+
what is the procedure of the benedict’s test
- solution starts out blue as sample is added
- volume of sample must be equal to volume of benedicts solution
- heated in a water bath, water level just above solution level (submerged)
- heat for 2-5 mins, make sure water bath is boiling before placing test tube in
what color and opacity solutions may benedict’s test produce
- green opaque
- orange opaque
- brick red opaque
why doesnt benedicts test work for non reducing sugars (i.e. sucrose)
- functional groups of both glucose residue and fructose residue are attached to each other by glycosidic bond (A-1,2-glycosidic bond)
- cannot reduce Cu2+ to Cu+
- must hydrolyse first
what is protection (provided by tryglycerides) in animals
fats around internal organs protect them from damage caused by impact