Week 1 - What is biochemistry Flashcards
What are the three domains of life?
bacteria, archaea, and eukarya
What are some advantages of multi cellular organisms?
- Provide stable environment for cells within the organism
- Allows cells to specialise
- Larger cells and greater complexity
- Potential to deal with change and further exploit its environment
What is the relationship between the size of the cell and the function of the cell?
Usually small cells have less molecular and chemical reactions that take place
What is the relationship between the size of the cell and the rate of chemical and molecular reactions of the cell?
- Small cell size = rapid metabolism
- Need for rapid transport by diffusion
what are the cellular consequences of SA/V?
- Large SA = more opportunity for diffusion in and out of cell
- Increase SA/V = increased exposure to the environment
- Large V = Longer time it would take for required amount of molecules to diffuse out of and back in the cell
Why is cellular SA/V important?
Cells optimise SA/V ratio to reflect what they need to survive and to reflect their function.
List the 4 main classes of macro-molecules in organisms?
- proteins
- polysaccharides (carbohydrates)
- lipids
- nucleic acids (DNA and RNA)
What makes a macro-molecule?
macromolecules are comprised of individual smaller molecules (monomers) covalently connected together usually in a linear sequence
What are the main properties of proteins?
- Most versatile of the macro molecules
- Responsible for a wide variety of functions in the cell
- Functions related to the different orientations/sequences of the 20 common amino acids
- Amino acid orientations also determine the 3D structure of the protein
What are the main properties of polysaccharides?
- one of the most abundant organic molecules in cells
- Have many roles including source of energy, cell recognition, and cell to cell communication
What are the main properties of nucleic acids?
- Two main classes; DNA and RNA
- Important information molecules
- DNA is responsible for passing on information from one generations to the next
why are covalent bonds important in relation to biomolecules?
Strong covalent bonds are important in forming biomolecules and the backbones of
macromolecules
Why are Non-Covalent bonds important in relation to biomolecules?
The relatively weak non-covalent bonds are also easily broken and so permit repeated interactions that are essential for many temporary interactions important
for life; E.g. DNA replication and Transcription
What is a synthetic molecule?
A synthetic (man-made) molecule has exactly the same structure, chemical properties, physical properties and organic properties as the organic molecule. The only difference is the way they are made
