Chapter 2: The Chemistry of Life Flashcards
Polyunsaturated Fatty Acid
Fatty acids with multiple double carbon bonds. These kinds of fatty acids cannot be synthesized by the body.
Van Der Waals Forces
Weak, brief attractions between two neutral atoms.
Gamma Rays
Rays emitted by uranium and plutonium and have extremely penetrating power.
Suspensions
Mixture of solute and solvent where the solutes exceed 100 nm and the particles separate when allowed to stand. Opaque or extremely cloudy substances.
Decomposition Reactions
A large molecule breaks down into two or more smaller ones.
AB —> A + B
Mineral
Inorganic elements extracted from the soil by plants and passed up the food chain to humans and other organisms
Colloids
Mixtures of solute and solvent where the solutes are between 1 and 100 nm and the particles remain mixed when standing. Cloudy substances.
Element
Th simplest form of matter to have unique chemical properties
Electromagnetic Energy
Kinetic energy stored in moving radiation called photons
Oxidation
Any chemical reaction in which a molecule give up electrons and release energy.
Free energy
The potential energy available in a system to do useful work.
Sucrose
Glucose + Fructose, one of three primary disaccharides.
Physical Half-Life
Charged particles with an unequal amount of protons and electrons.
Organic Chemistry
The study of compounds of carbon.
Solutions
Mixtures of a solute and solvent where the solutes are less than 1 nm and the solute/solvent do not separate. Clear substances.
Ionic Bonds
The attraction between a cation and an anion
Atomic Weight
Relative atomic mass which accounts for the mixture of isotopes.
Radioactivity
The process of decay which turns unstable radioisotopes into stable isotopes
Isotopes
Varieties of elements which differ from one another only in number of neutrons and therefore atomic mass.
Law of Mass Action
Reversible reactions proceed from the reactants in greater quantities to the substances in lower quantities.
Chemical Energy
Potential energy stored in the bonds of molecules.
Lactose
Glucose + Galactose, one of three primary disaccharides
Maltose
Glucose + Glucose, one of three primary disaccharides.
Functional Groups
Small clusters of atoms that determine many properties of an organic molecule.
Anabolism
Consists of energy-storing synthesis reactions.
Emulsion
A suspension of one liquid in another such as oil in water.
Saturated Fatty Acid
A fatty acid that has as much hydrogen as it can carry such as palmitic acid.
Exchange Reactions
Two molecules exchange atoms or a group of atoms.
AB +CD —> AC + BD
Beta Particles
A free election which can only penetrate the skin by a few millimeters
Compounds
Molecules composed of two or more different elements.
Conjugated
Covalently bound to.
Work
To move something
Hydrogen Bonds
A weak attraction between a slightly positive hydrogen in one atom and a slightly negative oxygen/nitrogen in another atom.
Kinetic Energy
Energy of motion energy that is doing.
Ionizing Radiation
High energy radiation ejects electrons from other atoms converting atoms into ions.
Fatty Acid
A chain of normally 4-24 carbon atoms with a carboxyl group at one end and a methyl group on the other.
Dehydration Synthesis
When an enzymes removes a hydroxyl group (OH-) from one monomer and a hydrogen (-H) from another. This creates water as a byproduct.
Energy
The capacity to do work
Protoglycans
Macromolecules in which the carbohydrate component is dominant and a peptide protein forms a small component.
Unsaturated Fatty Acid
Some carbons joined together by double covalent bonds.
Synthesis Reactions
Two or more molecules combine to form a larger one.
A+B —> AB
Molecules
Chemical particles composed of two or more atoms
Starch
The corresponding energy-storage polysaccharide plants. Stores sunlight and nutrients. One of the three primary polysaccharides.
Trace Elements
Elements that only exist in minute quantities.
Salts
Electrically neutral compound of cations and anions.
Biochemistry
Study of molecules that compose living things.
Catabolism
Consists of energy-releasing decomposition reactions
Polymers
Molecules made of a relative series of identical or similar subunits called monomers.
Electrolytes
Substances that ionize in the water and form solution which can conduct electricity.
Glucose, Galactose, and Fructose
The three primary monosaccharides that all share the same chemical formula and are isomers of each other.
Nonpolar Covalent Bonds
When shared electrons spend approximately equal amount of time around the nucleus. The strongest chemical bond.
Heat
Kinetic energy of molecular motion
Essential Fatty Acids
Fatty acids which must be obtained from the diet because humans cannot synthesize them.
Glycogen
An energy storage polysaccharide made by cells of the liver, muscles, brain, uterus, and vagina. One of the three primary polysaccharides.
Carbon Backbones
Bonded carbon atoms that have been formed into long chains, branched molecules and rings.
Atomic Number
The number of protons in the nucleus
Hydrolysis
A water molecule ionizes (OH-) and (H+). An enzyme breaks the covalent bond linking one monomer to another and add (OH-) to one and (H+) to another.
Potential Energy
Energy contained in an object because of its position but that us not doing work at the time.
Free Radicals
Unstable, highly reactive chemical particles with an odd number of electrons. These are produced by some normal metabolic reactions of the body, radiation, or chemicals. The reactions are short-lived.
Radioisotopes
Unstable isotopes
Moiety
Each chemically different component to a conjugated macromolecule.
Covalent Bonds
Bonds formed when two atoms share electrons
Equilibrium
The ratio of products to reactants is stable.
Cellulose
A structural polysaccharide that gives strength to the cell walls of plants. Principle of wood, cotton, and paper. One of the three primary polysaccharides.
Reduction
Any chemical reaction in which a molecules gains electrons and energy.
Chemical Reactions
A process in which covalent or ionic bonds are formed or broken.
Alpha Particles
Consists of two protons and two neutrons and are too large to penetrate skin.
Polar Covalent Bonds
When one shared electron spends more time orbiting one nucleus than the other. Creates a negative charge to the region getting more time.
Catalysts
Substances which temporarily bind to reactants and hold them in a favorable position to react with each other
Chemical Equation
Typically shows the reactants on the left and the products on the right.
Isomers
Molecules with identical molecular formula but different arrangements of their atoms.
Molecular Weight
The sum of atomic weights of the molecules atoms.
Reversible Reactions
Can go into either direction under different circumstances.
