Key Words Flashcards
Monomer
a molecule that can be bonded to other identical monomers to form a polymer e.g. DNA, RNA, Starch
polymer
a large molecule made of repeating smaller molecules called monomers
polymerisation
the process of joining monomers in a chemical reaction
condensation reaction
joins two molecules together with the formation of a chemical bond and involves the elimination of water
Hydrolysis reaction
breaks a chemical bond between two molecules and involves the use of a water molecule
glycosidic bond
a bond formed between two monosaccharides
polar molecule
has a partial positive charge in one part of the molecule and complementary negative charge in another part
non-polar molecule
the electrons are shared equally between the nuclei, so the distribution ozf charge is even and the force of attraction between different molecules is small
saturated
all the carbon atoms are linked with the maximum number of hydrogen atoms and there and there are no double carbon (C=C) bonds
unsaturated
molecules with one or more double carbon bonds
emulsion
a fine dispersion of minute droplets of one liquid in another in which it is not soluble or miscible
amino group
NH2 group which has an overall positive charge
carboxyl group
COOH group which has an overall negative charge
chromatography
a process which is used to separate mixtures
dipeptide bond
a bond which is formed between two amino acids
polypeptide
a polymer consisting of amino acids joined together in a process of polymerisation
prosthetic group
a non-protein group which form part of or is associated with a protein
DNA replication
the process by which an exact or identical copy of DNA is produced before cell division
semi-conservative replication
each of the two new DNA molecules contains one strand from the original DNA molecule and one new strand
Double helix
two DNA polynucleotide strands, twisted around each other and held in place by hydrogen bonds
Complimentary bases
The nucleotides in a base pair are complimentary which means the shape allows them to bond together with hydrogen bonds. The A-T pair forms to hydrogen bonds. The C-G pair forms three. The hydrogen bonding between complimentary bases hold to the two strands of DNA together.
Polynucleotide strand
A polymer, composed of a number of monomers called nucleotides, joined together by phosphodiester bonds
DNA helicase
An enzyme that unwinds the DNA double helix by breaking hydrogen bonds between complimentary nucleotide base pairs.
DNA polymerase
The enzyme joint adjacent nucleotides (to form a new polynucleotide strand)
