water and inorganic ions Flashcards
what type of component is water
chief component of cells
makes up 65-70% of the mass of human beings
why is water having a relatively high specific heat capacity a good thing
organisms that are largely made up of water, their temps don’t vary
why is water having a relatively high latent heat of evaporation a good thing
useful for sweating- when water in sweat is evaporated this translates thermal energy from the body cooling it down
why is having strong forces of cohesion between water molecules good
important in the transport of water in the xylem (transpiration stream)
also creates surface tension when water meets the air- produces a skin on the surface of water
why is the fact water is reactive and a metabolite a good thing
during digestion a bond with polymer molecules may be broken by a reaction with a water molecule- hydrolysis
why is water being a solvent a good thing
many reactions take place in aqueous solutions and many substances are transported dissolves in water
what are hydrogen ions used for
regulating acidity/ PH
usually giving acidic conditions in the stomach
what are Iron ions used for
important in the haem group of haemoglobin
what are phosphate ions used for
forms part of the sugar phosphate backbone in nucleic acids
forms part of the structure of ATP
also used to form phospholipids which form part of the cell membrane
what are sodium ions used for
important in absorbing glucose molecules from the gut by cotransport across cell membranes
