Macromolecules Flashcards
What are monosaccharides?
Simplest sugars containing only one carb.
What are disaccharides?
2 linked monosaccharide units.
What are oligosaccharides?
3 or more linked monosaccharide units.
What are polysaccharides?
100s and thousands of monosaccharide units that are joined.
What configurations do monosaccharides come as?
Alpha or Beta
What are homopolysaccharides?
Polysaccharides containing a single monosaccharide unit, e.g glycogen.
What are heteropolysaccharides?
Polysaccharides containing more than one monosaccharide unit.
What structural significance does glycogen have?
It is branched
Why is it useful to have glycogen branched?
Because then, separate brunches can be broken down for energy much more efficiently
What is the importance of heteropolysaccharides in bacterial cell walls?
They are crucial structural components and are cross-linked with other compounds via peptidoglycans
What can degrade peptidoglycans?
Lysozymes
What is the significant function of glycoproteins and glycolipids?
Within cell membrane
What are amino acids?
Amino acids are a combination of an amine group (NH2) and a carboxyl group.
How are amino acids classified?
According to their R group.
What are polypeptides?
They are chains of amino acids that are joined together by a peptide bond.
What are the four structures of protein?
- Primary
- Secondary
- Tertiary
- Quaternary
What is a typical primary protein structure?
Amino acids linked with a covalent bond
What is a typical secondary protein structure?
Coiling into alpha helix or beta sheets
Which secondary coiled structure is considered “simpler”?
Alpha helix
What are nucleic acids made out of?
Monomers called nucleotides
What is a simple nucleotide structure?
- Five carbon sugar
- Phosphate group
- Nitrogenous base
What binds complementary DNA strands?
Hydrogen bond
What is the main storage method of lipids in adipose tissue?
Combine a glycerol molecule with a fatty acid to form a triacylglycerol.
What is the characteristic kink represents?
Kink is present in unsaturated fats and represents a carbon double bond
What are phospholipids?
Molecules with phosphate head and a lipid tail
What are sphingolipids?
They are lipids composed of a polar head group and two nonpolar tails.
How do we create an active enzyme (holoenzyme)?
Apoenzyme + a prosthetic group (such as co-factors or co-enzymes)
How do enzymes work?
By using their electron-rich active sight they are able to lower the activation energy in order to break down certain molecules.
What enables an enzyme to bind specifically to its substrate?
Complimentary shaping of the active site
What type of kinetics do un-regulated enzymes follow?
Michaelis Mente kinetics
What does affinity mean?
It is a rate of binding between substances. Easily speaking Low Km = High Affinity, meaning it needs little substrate concentration to be effecient.
What are the two types of non Regulatory Enzyme inhibition?
- Reversible (Weak covalent bonding)
2. Irreversible (Strong Covalent bonding)
What is competitive inhibition?
Inhibition process, in which inhibitor and substrate compete for the active site.
What is non-competitive inhibition?
When the inhibitor binds away on a different site of the enzyme and this changes the shape of the active site.
What is un-competitive inhibition?
The inhibitor binds only after the substrate has bound to the active site.
What are irreversible inhibitors?
Inhibitors that either binds or destroys a functional group on the enzyme.
What is feedback inhibition?
When end product inhibits the function of Enzyme 1 in the metabolic chain.
What cellular processes regulate controlled enzyme activity?
- Allosteric control
- Covalent modification
- Zymogens
- Isozymes
What is allosteric enzyme regulation?
Enzyme activity changes through the binding of the modulator. This may Increase or Decrease the activity of the enzyme. Non covalent/ reversible regulation.
What is a covalent modification?
It is when the covalent bonding of modifying groups to enzyme produces inactive or active forms of the enzyme. Covalent / reversible inhibition.
What is zymogen modification?
Precursor of active enzymes. Need a structural change to work.
What are isozymes?
Enzyme with same catalytic function but different kinetics.
