Nucleic Acids- Water Flashcards
How is water a metabolite?
In lots of metabolic reactions including condensation and hydrolysis reactions
What does it mean that water is a solvent?
Some substances dissolve in it
How does water help with temperature control?
It has a high latent heat of vaporisation and a high specific heat capacity
How do water molecules help water transport in plants?
They are very cohesive
What is a molecule of water?
One atom of oxygen and two atoms of hydrogen
How are atoms charged in water molecules?
Hydrogen slightly positive, oxygen slightly negative
What makes a water molecule a polar molecule?
Has a partial negative charge on one side and a partial positive charge on the other
How do water molecules attract via hydrogen bonding?
Negative oxygen atoms attract to positive hydrogen atoms on another water molecule
How does water have a high latent heat of vaporisation?
Takes a lot of energy to break hydrogen bonds between water molecules so a lot of energy is used up when water evaporates which is useful for living organisms because they can use water loss through evaporation to cool down
How can water buffer changes in temperature?
Hydrogen bonds between water molecules can absorb a lot of energy so it has a high specific heat capacity (takes a lot of energy to heat up) so water doesn’t experience rapid temperature changes which makes water a good habitat and living organisms can maintain a constant internal body temperature
How is there strong cohesion between water molecules?
Water molecules are very cohesive because they’re polar which helps water flow making it useful for transporting substances and strong cohesion means water has a high surface tension when comes into contact with air
