Topic 1.4 - Properties of Biological Macromolecules 𖦹⋆｡°✩ Flashcards
how are living systems organized
in a hierarchy of structural levels
what do all these levels of hierarchy have in common
at all levels, function is related to structure
what happens when there is a change in structure
there is a change in function
how are the properties of biomolecules determined in living systems
properties are determined by the structures and function of the molecules
what are nucleic acids
polymers made of nucleotides (monomers)
what is the basic structure of nucleotides (3 components)
༻ a 5-C sugar
༻ a phosphate group
༻ a nitrogen base
where do all nucleic acids store biological information
in the sequence of nucleotide monomers
what are some examples of nucleic acids
DNA and RNA
how do DNA and RNA differ
༻ in the type of sugar contained (deoxy/ribose)
༻ in the nitrogen base contained (ATGCU)
. . . they both store biological information, but the structural differences between them result in specific functional differences
how do amino acids have directionality
with an amino and carboxyl terminus
what is a polypeptide
the primary structure of a protein
what does a polypeptide consist of
a specific order of amino acids
what does the order of amino acids determine
the overall shape that a protein can achieve
how can amino acids differ
in the R group, aka the atom(s) attached to the central atom
what properties can the R group have
it can be hydrophobic, hydrophilic, or ionic
how can different amino acids affect a protein
different amino acids in the polypeptide allow the protein to have regional differences in structure and function
how do carbohydrates and lipids vary in structure and function
༻ complex carbohydrates can have monomers whose structures determine the properties and functions of the carbohydrate
༻ lipids are nonpolar macromolecules that do not have true monomers but are comprised of subunits (like fatty acids/glycerol)
༻ lipids have fatty acid components that determine structure and function based on saturation
༻ specialized lipids (phospholipids) contain hydrophilic and hydrophobic regions that determine their interactions with other molecules (head/tail)
what are biological/cell membranes made of
phospholipids and proteins that can have hydrophobic and hydrophilic regions
what do the hydrophilic regions of phospholipids and proteins interact with
༻ each other
༻ the water environments
what do the hydrophobic regions of phospholipids and membrane proteins interact with
༻ each other
༻ CANNOT interact with water environments
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