Molecular bonding Flashcards
Describe covalent bonds
-atoms consist of a nucleus surrounded by shells of electrons
-most atoms tend to be stable when outermost shell has 8 electrons
-atoms of different elements have different numbers of electrons in their outermost shell
-by sharing electrons with other atoms the atoms outermost shell can be filled and becomes strongly bonded with other atom - this is a covalent bond
Condensation and hydrolysis reactions
-condensation reaction occurs when two molecules are joined together with removal of water
-in same way, two molecules can be split apart with addition of water - hydrolysis
Describe monomers and polymers
-condensation and hydrolysis reactions are responsible for linking and splitting apart biological molecules
-the units which are joined together they form a dimer
-when lots monomers join together they form a polymer
List the monomer and polymer of carbohydrates, proteins and nucleic acids
CARBOHYDRATES
monomer= monosaccharides (e.g. glucose)
polymer=polysaccharide (e.g. starch)
PROTEINS
monomer=amino acids
polymer=polypeptides and proteins
NUCLEIC ACIDS
monomer=nucleotides
polymer= DNA and RNA
Describe hydrogen bonds
-a hydrogen bond is weak interaction which happens wherever molecules contain slightly negative charged atom bonded to slightly positively charged hydrogen atom
-the bond is weaker than a covalent bond
-in some polymers, thousands and thousands of hydrogen bonds form between chains of monomers
-having many bonds like this help stabilise the structure of some biological molecules
WATER PROPERTIES: transparent liquid
-0-100 degrees celcius
1) Habitat - aquatic animals can move/swim
2) photosynthesis can occur - plants can live at depth
3) cytoplasm - reactions occur in solution
4) transport - blood, in xylem
WATER PROPERTIES: solvent due to polar molecule
1) solutes can dissolve - reactions can occur in cytoplasm of cells
2) molecules and ions can be transport - e.g. in blood
3) plants/fish can absorb minerals from water
WATER PROPERTIES: ice less dense than water
-ice less dense than water therefore ice floats on water
-below 4 degrees
-H bonds form lattice
-deeper water insulated
-prevents ponds from completely freezing
WATER PROPERTIES: cohesion and surface tension
-cohesion - water column in xylem
-surface tension - insect walk on water
-adhesion - capillary action in xylem
WATER PROPERTIES: high specific heat capacity
-energy required to raise 1kg by 1 degree=4.2kJ
-takes a lot of energy to heat water up
-therefore thermally stable aquatic environment for aquatic organisms
-stable environment in cells - enzymes work efficiently
WATER PROPERTIES: high latent heat of vaporisation
-energy required to break H bonds and cause evaporation
-evaporation from skin takes a lot of heat energy - effective cooling, sweating and panting
WATER PROPERTIES: reactant
-water is part of metabolic reactions e.g. hydrolysis
Carbohydrate function
-carbohydrates contain carbon, hydrogen and oxygen
-hydrated carbon - for ever carbon there are 2 hydrogens and 1 oxygen atom
-functions: act as source of energy (e.g. glucose), store of energy (e.g. starch) and structural units (e.g. cellulose in plants and chitin in insects)
-some carbohydrates are also part of other molecules such as nucleic acids and glycolipids
-three main groups of carbohydrates: monosaccharides, disaccharides and polysaccharides
Describe monosaccharides
-monosaccharides are simplest carbohydrates
-they’re important in living things as source of energy
-soluble and sweet and reducing sugars therefore turn benedict solution red
-well suited due to large number of carbon-hydrogen bonds
-they’re sugars, soluble in water, insoluble non polar solvent
-can exist as straight chains (triose and tetrose)
-or can ring or cyclic forms (pentoses and hexoses)
-have backbone of single bonded carbon atoms with one double bonded to oxygen atom to form carbonyl group
-different sugars have different numbers of carbon atoms
-hexose=6/ pentose=5/ triose=3
-monosaccharide hexose sugars like glucose, are monomers of more complex carbohydrates and they bond to form disaccharides or polysaccharides
Describe disaccharides
-disaccharides are sweet and soluble
-the most common are maltose (malt sugar), sucrose and lactose (milk sugar)
-disaccharides are made when two monosaccharides join together
-alpha glucose+ alpha glucose - maltose
-alpha glucose+ fructose - sucrose
-B galactose +alpha glucose - lactose
-B glucose + B glucose - cellobiose
-sucrose = non reducing sugar
-lactose and maltose = reducing sugar
Formation of disaccharides
-when they join, condensation reaction occurs to form glycosidic bond
-2 hydroxyl groups line up next to each other from which water molecule removed
-this leaves oxygen atom acting as link between two monosaccharide units
Breakdown of disaccharides
-disaccharides are broken into monosaccharides by a hydrolysis reaction, which requires addition of water
-water proves a hydroxyl group (OH-) and hydrogen which help break glycosidic bond
Alpha glucose
-hexose sugar
-energy source
-component of starch and glycogen (energy store)
Beta glucose (C6H12O6)
-hexose sugar
-energy source
-component of cellulose, provides structural support in plant cell walls
Ribose (C5H10O5)
-pentose sugar
-component of ribonucleic acid (RNA), ATP and NAD
Deoxyribose (C5H10O4)
-pentose sugar
-component of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA)
Function of polysaccharides
-e.g. starch, glycogen, chitin, peptidoglycan
-energy source - glucose for respiration
-energy store - starch in plants, glycogen in animal cells
-structure - cellulose in plants, chitin in fungi, peptidoglycan in bacteria
-form part of larger molecules, e.g. nucleic acids, glycoproteins, glycolipids
Polysaccharides as energy stores and sources
-polysaccharides are polymers of monosaccharides
-glucose is source of energy as its reactant for respiration
-if you join lots of glucose molecules together into polysaccharides, you can create store of energy
-plants store energy as starch in chloroplasts and membrane bound starch grains
-humans store energy as glycogen
-structure of some polysaccharides make good stores
-glycogen in animals and starch in plants (comprised of amylose and amylopectin) occur within cells in form of large granules
Why are polysaccharides good store of monosaccharides
-glycogen and starch compact meaning they do not take up large amount space
-polysaccharides hold glucose molecules in chains so can easily be ‘snipped’ off from end by hydrolysis when required for respiration
-amylose unbranched however amylopectin and glycogen branched
-branched chains tend to be more compact and offer chance for lots of glucose molecules to be snipped off by hydrolysis for quick release of lots of energy
-amylase responsible for hydrolysing 1-4 glycosidic bonds and glucosidase responsible for hydrolysing 1-6 glycosidix bonds
-polysaccharides less soluble in water than monosaccharides - therefore water potential less affected
POLYSACCHARIDES: amylose structure
-a long chain of alpha glucose molecules coils into spiral shape, with hydrogen bonds holding spiral in place
-hydroxyl groups on carbon 2 are situated on inside of coil, making molecule less soluble and allowing hydrogen bonds to form to maintain coiled structure
POLYSACCHARIDES: amylopectin structure
-amylopectin also coils into spiral shape, held together with hydrogen bonds but with branches emerging from spiral
POLYSACCHARIDES: glycogen
-1-4 glycosidic chains
-glycogen has less tendency to coil
-have more branches meaning more compact
-easier to hydrolyse monomer units as more ends
What is cellulose
-cellulose is found in plants, forming the cell walls
-it is a tough, insoluble and fibrous substance
-its a polysaccharide made from long chains of B glucose molecules bonded together through condensation reactions to form glycosidic bonds
Structure of cellulose as a direct result of bonding
-hydrogen and hydroxyl groups on carbon 1 are inverted in B glucose - this means that every other B glucose molecule in the chain is rotated by 180 degrees
-this and the B1-4 glycosidic bond helps prevention of chain spiralling
-hydrogen bonding between the rotated B glucose molecules in each chain also gives the chain additional strength and stops it spiralling
-hydrogen bonding between the rotated B glucose molecules in different chain gives whole structure additional strength
- the hydroxyl groups on carbon 2 sticks out enabling hydrogen bonds to be formed between the chains
-when 60-70 cellulose chains bound together they form microfibrils which are 10-30nm in diameter
-these bundle together into macrofibrils containing up to 400 microfibrils which are embedded in pectins to form plant cell walls
-macrofibrils run in all directions, criss crossing the wall for extra strength
Describe the structure and function of plant cell walls
-microfibrils and macrofibrils have very high tensile strength due to glycosidic bonds and because of hydrogen bonds between chains
-macrofibrils are stronger than steel wire of same diameter
-macrofibrils run in all directions, crisscrossing the wall for extra strength
-it is difficult to digest cellulose because the glycosidic bonds between the glucose molecules are harder to break
How do the features of cellulose help the plant function
-plants do not have a rigid structure therefore each cell needs strength to support the whole plant
-there is space between macrofibrils for water and mineral ions to pass in and out of the cell
-cell wall is fully permeable
-high tensile strength prevents plant cells from bursting when they are turgid giving support - turgid cells press against each other, supporting plant structure as a whole
-macrofibril structure can be reinforced with other substances for extra support or to make walls waterproof e.g. cutin and suberin are waxes that block spaces in the cell wall to make it waterproof
What are other examples of structural polysaccharides
-bacterial cell wall - peptidoglycan made from long polysaccharide chains that lie in parallel, cross linked by short peptide chains
-exoskeletons - insect and crustacean exoskeletons are made from chitin
-it differs from cellulose as had acetylamino group (NH.OCCH3) rather than a hydroxyl group on carbon 2
-it forms cross links between long parallel chains of acetlyglucosamine in a similar way to cellulose
How do humans exploit cellulose
-cotton is 90% cellulose
-cellophane and celluloid are derived from cellulose
-one of main components of paper is cellulose
-rayon is a semi-synthetic fibre produced from cellulose
What are lipids
-lipids contain large amounts of carbon and hydrogen and smaller amounts of oxygen
-they are insoluble in water because they are not polar and so do not attract water molecules, but do dissolve in alcohol
-3 most important lipids - triglyceride, phospholipid and steroid - these are not polymers but do have different components bonded together - they are examples of macromolecules
TRIGLYCERIDES: glycerol
-glycerol has three carbon atoms
-it is an alcohol which means it has free -OH groups
-there are three -OH groups which are important to the structure of triglycerides