General Chemistry and Biochemistry Vocabulary Flashcards

Vocabulary flashcards covering matter, energy, elements, mixtures, chemical reactions, pH balance, and major biological macromolecules based on lecture notes.

Matter

Anything that takes up space and has mass; exists in solid, liquid, and gas states.

Energy

The capacity to do work, occurring in kinetic and potential forms.

Chemical Energy

A form of energy stored in chemical bonds.

Electrical Energy

A form of energy resulting from the movement of charged particles.

Mechanical Energy

A form of energy directly involved in the movement of matter.

Radiant/Electromagnetic Energy

A form of energy that travels in waves, such as light and heat.

Major Elements of the Human Body

The four elements that make up 96.1% of body mass: Oxygen (65.0%), Carbon (18.5%), Hydrogen (9.5%), and Nitrogen (3.2%).

Trace Elements

Elements required by the body in very minute amounts (less than 0.01% of body mass), many of which act as part of enzymes or are required for enzyme activation.

Atom

The smallest unit of an element, consisting of a nucleus with protons ($p^+$) and neutrons ($n^0$), surrounded by electrons ($e^-$).

Isotopes

Atoms of the same element that contain different numbers of neutrons.

Molecule

A combination of two or more atoms bound together, which can be of the same or different elements.

Compound

A substance composed of two or more different elements chemically bound together.

Solution

A homogeneous mixture in which solute particles are very tiny, do not settle out, and do not scatter light.

Colloid

A mixture in which solute particles are larger than in a solution, scatter light, and do not settle out.

Suspension

A heterogeneous mixture with very large solute particles that settle out over time and may scatter light.

Synthesis (Anabolic) Reaction

A chemical reaction in which chemical bonds are formed.

Decomposition (Catabolic) Reaction

A chemical reaction in which chemical bonds are broken.

Exchange Reaction

A chemical reaction that involves both the synthesis and decomposition of bonds.

Inorganic Compounds

Chemical compounds that usually do not contain carbon, including water, salts, and many acids and bases.

Organic Compounds

Molecules containing carbon that are usually large and covalent, including carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, and nucleic acids.

Dehydration Synthesis

A reaction where monomers are joined together by removing an -OH group from one monomer and an -H from another at the site of bond formation, releasing a water molecule.

Hydrolysis

A reaction where monomers linked by covalent bonds are released by adding a water molecule, attaching an -OH to one monomer and an -H to the other.

Normal Body pH

The tightly regulated arterial pH range of 7.35 to 7.45 required for homeostasis.

Buffers

Chemical mechanisms or organ systems (such as the carbonic acid-bicarbonate buffer system, kidneys, and lungs) that resist changes in pH.

Monosaccharides

The monomers of carbohydrates, including hexose sugars (glucose, fructose, galactose) and pentose sugars (deoxyribose, ribose).

Disaccharides

Carbohydrates consisting of two linked monosaccharides, such as sucrose, maltose, and lactose.

Polysaccharides

Long polymers of linked monosaccharides, such as glycogen.

Triglyceride

A neutral fat composed of three fatty acid chains bound to a glycerol backbone by dehydration synthesis.

Phospholipid

A modified lipid consisting of a phosphorus-containing polar head and two nonpolar fatty acid tails attached to a glycerol backbone.

Steroid

A lipid structure characterized by four interlocking hydrocarbon rings, with cholesterol serving as the basis for all body steroids.

Amino Acids

The building blocks of proteins, consisting of an amine group, an acid group, and a variable R group.

Primary Structure

The linear sequence of amino acids forming a polypeptide chain.

Secondary Structure

The coiling ($\alpha$-helix) or folding ($\beta$-sheet) of a polypeptide chain held together by hydrogen bonds.

Tertiary Structure

The compact globular folding of a polypeptide chain superimposed on secondary structures, held together by intramolecular bonds.

Quaternary Structure

A functional protein formed by the combination of two or more individual polypeptide chains.

Enzymes

Biological catalysts that speed up the rate of chemical reactions by lowering activation energy.

Nucleic Acids

The largest organic molecules in the body, composed of nucleotides (containing C, O, H, N, P), which include DNA and RNA.

Adenosine Triphosphate (ATP)

The primary cellular energy transfer molecule, composed of an adenine base, a ribose sugar, and three phosphate groups.