Stereochemistry Flashcards
Why is the shape of 3d molecules important
- impacts the biological function ( e.g. in drugs)
- perfect match with other molecules
- molecule interaction is similar to lick and key being influenced by shape of a molecule
What is a substrate
a substrate is a molecule that binds
What are structural isomers
Two molecules are structural isomers if they have the same molecular formula but a different attachment of atoms
What are cis and trans double bonds
cis (Z) - facing each other
trans (E) - furthest away from eachother
What is chirality
- an object is chiral if it is not superimposable on its mirror image ( e.g. hands are not superimposable but a flask is )
What are stereoisomers
they have the same bonds but a different spacial arrangement of atoms
what are sterogenic atoms
- asymmetric carbon atoms or chiral centres
What is a stereogenic C atom
one that has 4 different groups onto it
What is an import example of chirality using the thalidomide fiasco
- prenatal morning sickness tablet( thalidomide) , one molecule can be useful medicine to cure morning sickness the other molecule can be a deadly poison, ( caused birth defects)
What are enantiomers
- the relationship between two molecules that are the mirror image of eachother and are not superimposable
- same physio-chemical properties but can have different biological activity
- important in designing drugs to find any enantiomers and test them as other could be toxic
- molecule can only have 1
What is enantiomeric excess
- where reaction gives 50% 50% mixture of both enantiomers however it is wasteful if only what one ( one biologically active as a drug )
What are diastereomers
- these are not superimposable but are also not mirror images either
- while a molecule can only have 1 enantiomer they can have an infinity of diastereomers
- massively different function