Exam 1 Flashcards
What are the four major classes of organic molecules in living organisms?
Carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, and nucleic acids
What is an important characteristic of covalent bonds?
They store a lot of energy
What are hydrocarbons?
Molecules consisting of carbon and hydrogen atoms
Are hydrocarbons polar or nonpolar?
Nonpolar, and when functional groups are added, they confer chemical properties to the molecule.
When are triple bonds found in hydrocarbons?
Only in two-carbon hydrocarbons such as ethyne
When are single and double bonds found in hydrocarbons?
In linear and ring hydrocarbons
What are some general structures of hydrocarbons?
Linear unbranched chain, linear branched chain, or a structure with one or more rings
Match the bond type to the molecule: single, double, triple and ethane, ethene, and ethyne
Ethane- single, ethene- double, ethyne- triple
Which functional groups are most commonly found in biological reactions?
Hydroxyl, carbonyl, carboxyl, amino, phosphate, and sulfhydryl groups, which are linked by covalent bonds to other atoms in the molecule (usually represented by R)
Are lipids polar or nonpolar?
Primarily nonpolar and water-insoluble
List the three common types of lipid molecules and their function
Neutral lipids- stored and used as an energy source
Phospholipids- form cell membranes
Steroids- serve as hormones regulating cellular activities
True or false: neutral lipids have no charged groups (nonpolar)
True
What are the two types of neutral lipids?
Oils (liquid at biological temperatures) and fats (semisolid)
What is a fatty acid? Is it polar or nonpolar?
A fatty acid has a single hydrocarbon chain with a carboxyl (COOH) group at one end. The carboxyl group gives organic molecules acidic properties because the -OH group releases the H as a proton in aqueous solutions, turning it into an ionized form. Fatty acids are nonpolar.
How are triglycerides formed?
Formed through a process called dehydration synthesis between 3-carbon glycerol (an alcohol) and three fatty acid side chains. A covalent bond called the ester linkage forms between the COOH fatty acid and the OH of glycerol, which eliminates the polar group of glycerol and forms a nonpolar molecule
What is the hydroxyl group and what are some of its properties/applications?
Hydroxyl (–OH) can be found in molecules like alcohols. It is polar and hydrogen bonds with water, which facilitates dissolving of organic molecules. It allows an alcohol to link with other molecules through dehydration synthesis reactions.
Where is the ester linkage in triglycerides located?
Between the O in glycerol and the C in the fatty acid
How many molecules of water are formed through formation of triglycerides?
3
What roles do triglycerides play?
Serve as energy reserves in animals because they can store more than 2x the calories per gram as carbohydrates.
A layer of fatty tissue under skin acts as insulation in mammals and birds.
Triglycerides also help make bird feathers waterproof
What is a typical number of carbons in a fatty acid?
14 to 22; as chain length increases, the fatty acid becomes less water soluble and more oily
What is a saturated fatty acid? Where are they found?
A fatty acid that binds the maximum number of hydrogen atoms, meaning only single bonds exist between carbon atoms. These fatty acids can be found in solid animal fats such as butter
What are mono and polyunsaturated fats?
Fatty acids with one double bond are mono; acids with 2 or more are polyunsaturated.
Why are unsaturated fatty acids usually fluid at biological temperatures?
The presence of double bonds causes “bends” in the structure that mean the molecules cannot pack as tightly together.
Which are healthier- saturated or unsaturated fats?
Unsaturated fats.
What are examples of unsaturated fats?
Vegetable oils.
Is stearic acid saturated or unsaturated? (no bends)
Saturated
Is oleic acid saturated or unsaturated?
Unsaturated
What are trans fats?
Trans fats are formed through adding hydrogen to vegetable oil, which makes the liquid into a solid fat. This is called hydrogenation. Trans fats are also found in products such as milk, butter, cheese, meats, etc. in trans fats. In the process of hydrogenation, cis fatty acid configurations are transformed into trans fat configurations and this gives them more qualities of saturated fat but they are not a good source of energy and they are harder to process
Why are trans fats bad?
They raise the level of LDL cholesterol in the blood, which increases the risk of heart disease.
How can LDLs contribute to heart disease?
Atherosclerosis occurs due to buildup of plaques in coronary arteries; these plaques form from a buildup of excess cholesterol.
What is the structure of phospholipids?
Glycerol, 2 fatty acids as the nonpolar tails, a phosphate group as part of the polar head
Order goes polar unit–phosphate group– glycerol then the two nonpolar fatty acids
What type of fatty acid composes the tails?
One saturated, one unsaturated
What is the function of phospholipids?
They help form cell membranes; the polar ends are exposed to water and their nonpolar ends collect in a region that excludes water
What is a micelle?
Micelles are lipid molecules that orient with their polar head toward water and their nonpolar tails away from water in a circle
What is the structure of a phospholipid bilayer?
2 molecules thick- polar groups face water and hydrocarbon chains form nonpolar, hydrophobic regions in the interior
What are waxes?
Fatty acids combine with long-chain alcohols or hydrocarbon structures to form waxes, which are harder and less greasy than fats
What are the functions of waxes?
Help animals keep skin, hair, or feathers protected, lubricated, and pliable; plants also secrete waxes that form a protective exterior layer to reduce water loss and resist infection.
What are steroids?
Lipids with structures based on 3 hexane carbon rings and 1 pentane carbon ring. They control development, behavior, and many internal biochemical processes. The sex hormones that control differentiation of sexes and sexual behavior is one example.
What makes sterols unique?
They have a single polar OH group at one end of the ring framework and a nonpolar hydrocarbon chain at the other end
What role does cholesterol play?
It is an important part of animal cell membranes; sterols called phytosterols also occur in plant cell membranes
What are some structural differences between estradiol (an estrogen) and testosterone?
Estradiol has 3 double bonds in first ring an an OH group. In the pentane ring it has a CH3 and an OH group. Testosterone has an =O instead of -OH and an extra CH3 between the first two rings
What is the name for CH3?
Methyl
What do chlorophylls and carotenoids do?
They are pigments that absorb light and help convert it to chemical energy in plants
True or false: lipid groups combine w/ carbs to form glycolipids and w/ proteins to form lipoproteins with important strucural and functional roles in cell membranes
true
Define isomers
Molecules with the same molecular or empirical formula but different molecular structures
What are structural isomers?
Same chemical formula but the arrangement of atoms are different, such as glucose and fructose
What are stereoisomers?
They differ in how the groups are attached, auch as in mirror image molecules and L and D sugars
What is the carbonyl group?
Has C double bonded to O, usually found in aldehydes and ketones. Molecules with carbonyl groups are major building blocks for carbohydrates and participate in the reactions supplying energy for cellular activities.
Carboxyl
C double bonded to O and bonded to OH, gives organic molecules acidic properties because -OH releases the hydrogen as a proton in aqueous solutions, converting it into an ionized form. Found in carboxylic acids.
Amino
NH2, acts as an organic base by accepting a proton. Found in amines and amino acids.
Phosphate
P bonded to 3 O and double bonded to an O, found in organic phosphates such as glyceraldehyde-3 phosphate and nucleic acids. They react as weak acids because one or both OH groups release H. Can also bridge two organic building blocks. Added to or removed from molecules as part of reactions that conserve or release energy or to alter activity.
Sulfhydryl
Found in thiols. -SH. Easily converted into a covalent linkage where it loses hydrogen atoms. Two sulfhydryl groups form a disulfide linkage.
R-SH+ HS-R = R-S-S-R+ 2H + 2e-
Define enatiomers
Mirror image molecules
Are glucose and fructose structural or steroisomers?
Structural
Are galactose and glucose stereo or structural isomers?
Stereo
Describe and illustrate the dehydration synthesis process
In dehydration synthesis, water is removed and largr molecules are formed. The OH bonds join together to form a water molecule, leaving an O to join the monomers.
Describe and illustrate the hydrolysis process
Hydrolysis involves the breakdown of large molecules through the addition of water. Polymers are broken down into monomers through the addition of water.
What is a carbohydrate?
Molecules with a 1:2:1 ratio of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen. The empirical formula is CH2O.
What is a key factor about C-H bonds?
They hold a lot of energy
How many C atoms do monosaccharides have?
3-7
What are two monosaccharides called?
Disaccharide
What are polysaccharides?
Carbohydrate polymers with more than 10 linked monosaccharide monomers
What function do carbohydrates serve?
They can act as energy storage molecules; glycogen and starch are some examples. They can also be structural saccharides, such as cellulose.