Unit 1 - Biochemistry Flashcards
basic terms
Covalent Bonds
The interatomic linkage that results from the sharing of an electron pair between two atoms.
Ionic Bonds
A chemical bond formed when one atom gives up one or more electrons to another atom.
Polar
A bond between two or more atoms is polar if the atoms have significantly different electronegativities (>0.4).
Non-Polar
Unlike polar bonds, non-polar bonds share electrons equally. A bond between two atoms or more atoms is non-polar if the atoms have the same electronegativity or a difference in electronegativities that is less than 0.4.
Adhesion
Stick to something else. Water molecules that are attracted to other polar substances.
Cohesion
Stick to each other. Water molecules that are attached to other water substances.
Protein
A protein is a naturally occurring, extremely complex substance that consists of amino acid residues joined by peptide bonds.
Ion
An atom or molecule that has gained or lost one or more electrons. When an ion loses electrons they become Pawsitive, called cations. And anions are negative.
Isotopes
A variant of a chemical element. It contains the same number of protons but different number of neutrons.
Hydrogen Bonds
A hydrogen bond is a weak to moderate attractive force that occurs between a hydrogen atom covalently bonded to a highly electronegative atom (like oxygen or nitrogen) and another electronegative atom.
Acids/Bases
Substances that donate protons (H⁺ ions) in a solution. They typically have a sour taste
Specific Heat
Specific heat is the amount of heat energy required to raise the temperature of one unit mass of a substance by one degree Celsius (or one Kelvin).
Polymer
A subunit of monomers connected in a chain.
Monomer
A subunit used to build polymers.
Nucleic Acid
Large biomolecules that play an essential roles in viruses and cells.
Electrons
electron
Negatively charged subatomic; primarily distributes electricity.
Atom
Fundamental unit of matter. It forms various elements, compounds, and forms of life.
Element
A chemical substance that cannot be broken down into other substances by chemical reactions.
Proton
Positively charged atom, similar magnitude of the electron but opposite charge.
Neutron
A subatomic without a charge. Its mass however equals that of the proton.
Mole
A unit of measurement. The amount of pure substance containing the same number of chemical units.
Molarity
The # of moles solute per one liter of solution. (The symbol a capital M)
Molar Mass
The ratio between the mass and the amount of a substance of any sample compound. (The sum of the elements.)
Carbohydrate
Organic compounds made of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen. Source of energy, fruits, veggies, dairy products.
Lipid
Organic compounds that includes fatty acids that are insoluble in water, but soluble in organic substances. (e.g natural oils)
Nucleic acid
Subtance present in DNA or RNA whose moleclues are linked in a long chain consisting of many nucleotides.
Isomers
Different structural formula same chemical formula. (See: Glucose, and Fructose)
Conformation
Molecules can take different shapes based on the atoms and their bond angles. Sometimes the same molecule can have different shapes. Those shapes are called conformations.
Hydrolysis
A process of breaking down a chemical compound that involves splitting a bond and adding the elements of water to the resulting molecular fragments.
Dehydration Synthesis
The process of forming a new compound. The loss of water, which binds smaller structures together.
Hydrocarbon chains
Long chain of carbons with hydrogen. (Seen in Lipids)
Saturated/Unsaturated
A physical or chemical situation where a system can take no more of a substance. Unsaturated: having carbon–carbon double or triple bonds and therefore not containing the greatest possible number of hydrogen atoms for the number of carbons.
Nucleotide
Building block of DNA and RNA. Made out of a phosphate group.
Density
The qauntity of something per unit.
Surface Tension
Surface tension is the tendency of liquid surfaces at rest to shrink into the minimum surface area possible.
Organic
They all have Carbon and Hydrogen in them.
Inorganic
Ionic or covalent, no CH groups.
Amino Acids
All amino Acids have N3H and COOH.
Functional Groups
Are parts of molecules that affect the types of interactions molecules can have with other molecules, and they affect the shape of the molecule. (e.g Carboxyl, Amino)
DNA
Double helix, deoxyribose missing an oxygen. Has a sugar group w/ a 2’ hydrogen. Contains Thymine.
RNA
Single strand, used to transport instructions. Has a OH. Contains Urcail.
Peptide
A chain of the monomer amino acids.
Peptide bond
Covalent bond that links two amino acids.
Alpha helix
One of the two most common shapes of a secondary protein. Helical shape. Hydrogen bond between backbone structure. Carboxyl and amine thats 4 resides ahead leads to the helical shape.
Beta Pleated
Formed by carboxyl and amide of adjacent strands. parallel or antiparallel arrangments.
Directionality
The orientation or polarity of molecules. In Protiens N and C terminus and in Nucleic acids the 5’ and 3’ ends.
R-Groups
In biology, an “R group” refers to the side chain of an amino acid, which is the variable. Essentially, it represents the “rest of the molecule” beyond the core structure, as well as unique properties.
Hydrophobic
Afraid of water.
Hydrophilic
Attracted to water.
Glycerol
Serves as a backbone for phospholipids. with 3 fatty acids. (Remember unsaturated has one double bond.)
