unit 1 - chapter 5 (large biological molecules) Flashcards
what are macromolecules?
large/complex molecules; molecules of life
what are the 4 classes of large biological molecules that make up most living biomass?
carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, and nucleic acids
what is a polymer?
(many parts), a large molecule consisting of many similar building blocks
what is a monomer?
(single parts), repeating units that serve as building blocks
what can monomers form?
together they can form dimers, trimers, tetramers, and oligomers
what is the class of life’s organic molecules that isn’t a polymer?
lipids
what do enzymes do?
speed up chemical reactions such as those that make or break down polymers
what macromolecule are enzymes made of?
protein
what does dehydration do?
removes a water molecule to form a new bond
what does hydrolysis do?
adds a water molecule to break a bond
what’s in the blank?
each cell has thousands of different _____
macromolecules
what is a carbohydrate good at doing?
serves as fuel and building material
what is one way to remember carbohydrates?
pancake
what do carbohydrates include?
sugars and polymers of sugar
what is a monosaccharide?
(simple sugar), the simplest of carbohydrates
what is a disaccharide?
made of 2 monosaccharides
what is a common example of a disaccharide?
sucrose/table sugar
what is a polysaccharide?
(complex carb), polymers composed of many sugar building blocks
what is an example of a polysaccharide?
carbohydrate macromolecules
what’s in the blank?
monosaccharides have molecular formulas that are usually multiples of _____
CH20
what is the most common monosaccharide?
glucose
how are monosaccharides classified?
the location of the carbonyl group (as aldose or ketose) and the # of carbons in the carbon skeleton
what’s in the blank?
sugars have _____ structures
linear
what type of structure do monosaccharides form?
rings (in an aqueous solution)
what does the green hexagon represent?
glucose
what are the 3 most common disaccharides?
lactose (galactose and glucose), sucrose (glucose and fructose), and maltose (glucose and glucose)
how are monosaccharides linked to form a disaccharide?
glycosidic linkages
how do glycosidic linkages form?
dehydration synthesis
what’s in the blank?
maltose has a _____ to _____ glycosidic linkage
1-4
what’s in the blank?
sucrose has a _____ to _____ glycosidic linkage
1-2
what is starch?
the storage polysaccharide of plants that consists entirely of glucose monomers
what type of storage does starch have?
storage that is not meant to be permanent
what is the structure of starch?
helical
what is the simplest form of starch?
amylose
out of starch, glycogen, and cellulose; which one is meant to be permanent?
cellulose
where do plants store their surplus starch?
as granules within chloroplasts and other plastids
what are the 2 different types of polysaccharides?
storage polysaccharides and structural polysaccharides
what is cellulose?
structural polysaccharide that is a major component of the tough wall of plant cells
what’s in the blank?
like starch, _____ is a polymer of glucose
cellulose
what differs between starch and cellulose?
glycosidic linkages
what is the most abundant polysaccharide?
cellulose
what role do a and b linkages play in cellulose?
enzymes that digest starch by hydrolyzing a linkages cannot hydrolyze b linkages in cellulose
what is “insoluble fiber”?
cellulose in human food that passes through the digestive track
why is fiber good?
bc it rubs the intestinal walls so the intestines secrete mucus and you get smooth poops
what’s in the blank?
some microbes use _____ to digest cellulose
enzymes
what is flexible surgical needle thread made of?
chitin
what is chitin?
a polysaccharide that is used in exoskeletons of arthopods & in flexible surgical needle thread
what’s in the blank?
the methyl groups of starch face _____ way and the methyl groups of cellulose face _____ way
1; 2
what is something to remember lipids?
butter on the pancake
what kind of things do lipids include?
fats, phospholipids, and steroids
why are lipids not true polymers?
they are hydrophobic bc they consist mostly of hydrocarbons, which form nonpolar covalent bonds
what are fats?
a type of lipid that is constructed from 2 types of smaller molecules (glycerol and fatty acids)
what is a glycerol?
a 3-carbon alcohol with a hydroxyl group attached to each carbon
what is a fatty acid?
a carboxyl group attached to a long carbon skeleton
how is a fat formed?
fatty acid and glycerol hydroxyl groups go through a dehydration rxn and form (ester linkage) a fat molecule or a triglyceride
what are the 2 types of fatty acids?
saturated and unsaturated
how do fatty acids vary?
in length and in location/amount of double bonds
what is a saturated fatty acid?
max amount of hydrogen atoms possible & no double bonds
what state of matter are saturated fatty acids?
solid at room temp
what state of matter are unsaturated fatty acids?
liquid at room temp
what is an unsaturated fatty acid?
1 or more double bonds
what are fats with saturated fatty acids called?
saturated fats
what is an example of a saturated fat?
animal fats
what are fats with unsaturated fatty acids called?
unsaturated fats
what is an example of an unsaturated fat?
plant fats & fish fats
what is a trans-fat?
bad fats; typically produced by artificial hydrogenation of fatty acids; may contribute more to cardiovascular disease than saturated fats do
what is hydrogenation?
the process of converting unsaturated fats to saturated fats by adding hydrogen
what are omega-3 fatty acids?
good fats; certain unsaturated fatty acids that aren’t synthesized in the human body; required for normal growth
what type of fatty acids are required for growth?
omega-3 fatty acids
what type of fatty acid provides protection against cardiovascular disease?
omega-3 fatty acids
what is the major function of fats
energy storage
what type of cells do humans and other mammals store in their long-term food reserves?
adipose cells
what is fatty tissue also known as?
adipose tissue
what does adipose tissue do for an organism’s body?
cushions vital organs & insulates the body
what’s in the blank?
seeds store energy as _____ or _____ for new plants
fat or starch
what is a phospholipid?
2 fatty acids and a phosphate group attached to glycerol
are phospholipids hydrophobic, hydrophilic, or amphipathic?
amphipathic
what’s in the blank?
in phospholipids, the 2 fatty acid tails are _____ and the phosphate group (and its attachments) are _____
hydrophobic; hydrophilic
what do cells use phospholipids for?
used as a bilayer/boundary and in membranes
what is a steroid?
lipids characterized by a carbon skeleton consisting of 4 fused rings
what is cholesterol?
a type of steroid that is a component in animal cell membranes & a precursor from which other steroids are sythesized
what can cholesterol contribute to?
a high level can contribute to cardiovascular disease
what are the 2 sexual steroids?
estradiol & testosterone
what color is steroid in most diagrams?
yellow
what’s in the blank?
estradiol and testosterone are _____
not water-soluble
what is something to remember proteins?
eggs
what essential life macromolecule accounts for more than 50% of the dry mass of most cells?
proteins
what are the functions of proteins?
enzyme, amino acid storage, hormones, contractile/motor, defense, transport, receptors, structure
what is an enzyme?
molecular tools that help make rxns occur; most end in -ase
what are 2 examples of storage proteins?
albumin and casein
what are storage proteins?
proteins = polymers & need to be stored so they can be converted into other proteins
what’s in the blank?
growing organisms need to make a lot of _____
protein
what is albumin?
storage protein found in egg whites
what is casein?
storage protein found in milk
what type of proteins are easy to break down?
storage proteins
what is a hormone that isn’t a steroid?
insulin
what is an example of contractile & motor protein?
scaffolds of the proteins actin & myosin
what organ needs a lot of protein for motor function?
muscles
what is an example of a defensive protein?
antibodies are produced by our immune system to active & destroy foreign pathogens such as bacteria & viruses
where are transport proteins located and what do they do?
located in the phospholipid bilayer and allows the passage of materials in/out
what are receptor proteins?
proteins on the surface of cells that receive signals from the outside which causes a change on the inside of the cell
do receptor molecules themselves move molecules?
no, they act more like a doorbell that triggers change in the cell that receives the signal
what’s in the blank?
while cellulose (polysaccharide) = structure of plants, keratin/collagen/elastin = _____
structure of animals (skin)
what type of proteins are keratin, collagen, and elastin?
structural proteins
what are spider webs & silk made out of?
structural proteins
what are polypeptides?
unbranched polymers built from same set of 20 amino acids
what is a protein?
a biologically functional molecule that consists of 1 or more polypeptides
what are amino acids?
organic molecules with carboxyl & amino groups
how do amino acids differ from eachother?
their properties differ due to different R groups (side chains)
what are the 4 component of an amino acid?
amino group, carboxyl group, R group, and alpha carbon
can amino acids be ionized?
yes, 1 end gains a proton and the other end loses 1
what are the 4 different types of amino acids?
polar, nonpolar, acidic, basic
how can you tell if an amino acid is acidic or basic?
if R group=negatively charged its acidic and if R group=positively charged its basic
how can amino acids form polymers?
through dehydration rxns
to be a polymer, you need a type of linkage
what type of linkage do amino acids have?
peptide bonds (to form polypeptides)
how is a peptide bond formed?
dehydration rxn
what’s in the blank?
proteins have unique _____ bc their polypeptides are precisely twisted, folded, & coiled
shapes
what determines a protein’s 3-D structure?
the sequence of amino acids
what determines a protein’s function?
its structure
what are the 4 levels of protein structure?
primary, secondary, tertiary, & quaternary structure
what is primary structure?
unique sequence of amino acids
what is secondary structure?
found in most cells, coils/folds in the polypeptide chain; arises when peptide bonds in amino acid chain h-bond to each other, NO R GROUP INTERACTIONS YET
what is tertiary structure?
determines by interaction among various side groups/R groups; nonpolar fold inward & polar fold out; charged aa form ionic bonds with each other
what is quaternary structure?
multiple polypeptide chains; many proteins require multiple pp chains to be functional
what can affect a protein structure?
alterations in pH, salt concentration, temperature, or other environmental factors can cause a protein to unravel
what is denaturation?
loss of protein’s native structure; denatured protein=biologically inactive
what is an example of irreversible denaturation of a protein?
boiled eggs
what is an example of reversible denaturation of a protein?
keratin hair treatment
where are polypeptides made?
in the ribosome
what causes sickle cell disease?
misshapen hemoglobin (b-globin) causes a cascade effect and error in protein folding
what is a nucleic acid?
store, transmit, and help express hereditary information
what is a gene?
aa sequence of a polypeptide is programmed by a unit of inheritance
what are genes made of?
DNA (nucleic acid made of monomers called nucleotides)
what are the 2 types of nucleic acids?
DNA & RNA
what are the 3 differences between DNA and RNA?
DNA provides directions for its own replication, DNA directs synthesis of mRNA and through mRNA controls protein synthesis
where does protein synthesis occur?
ribosomes
what are polynucleotides?
nucleic acids that are polymers
what are nucleotides?
each polynucleotide is made up of these monomers
what are the 3 components of a nucleotide?
nitrogenous base, pentose sugar, 1 or more phosphate groups
what do phosphate groups in nucleotides do?
energy source
what does the pentose sugar in a nucleotide do?
makes operation run smooth and holds things together
what does the nitrogenous base in a nucleotide do?
directs the message that is encoded
in nucleotides, what # carbon does the phosphate group attach to?
5’
what’s in the blank?
in nucleotides, the _____ of the pentose are always pointed up
oxygen
how many rings do pyrimidines have?
1
how many rings do purines have?
2
what are the 2 different types of nitrogenous bases?
pyrimidines and purines
out of the pyrimidines, which base is in DNA and which base is in RNA?
thymine in DNA and uracil in RNA
what nucleic acid base pairs and which one only sometimes does?
DNA base pairs and RNA (single-stranded) sometimes does
what is the difference between deoxyribose and ribose?
deoxyribose is in DNA and has been deoxygenated while ribose is in RNA and have an oxygen
