Biology: Macromolecules, Carbohydrates & Lipids Overview Study Guide | Quizlet

Macromolecules

Large, complex organic molecules built from smaller organic molecules, essential for cellular structure and function.

Monomers

Small, single repeating molecular subunits that serve as the building blocks for larger polymer chains.

Polymers

Large molecules composed of many repeating monomer subunits linked together by covalent bonds.

Dehydration Synthesis

A chemical reaction in which monomers are joined together by covalent bonds with the simultaneous removal of a molecule of water.

Hydrolysis

A chemical process that breaks down polymers into individual monomers by adding a water molecule.

Carbohydrates

Biological macromolecules composed of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen, typically in a $1:2:1$ ratio, serving as a primary energy source and structural component.

Monosaccharides

The simplest monomeric unit of carbohydrates, consisting of single sugar molecules such as glucose, fructose, and galactose.

Glucose

A key six-carbon monosaccharide ($C_6H_{12}O_6$) that acts as the primary cellular energy substrate in biological organisms.

Disaccharides

Carbohydrates composed of two monosaccharide units joined together by a glycosidic linkage formed through dehydration synthesis.

Sucrose

A common disaccharide composed of one glucose molecule and one fructose molecule covalently bonded together.

Glycosidic Linkage

The covalent bond formed between two monosaccharides through a dehydration synthesis reaction.

Polysaccharides

Long chain polymers composed of many monosaccharide units linked by glycosidic bonds, used for energy storage or structural support.

Starch

A storage polysaccharide in plants composed entirely of glucose monomers linked by alpha-glycosidic bonds.

Glycogen

A highly branched storage polysaccharide made of glucose monomers, used by animals to store energy in liver and muscle cells.

Cellulose

A structural polysaccharide found in plant cell walls, consisting of unbranched chains of glucose monomers linked by beta-1,4-glycosidic bonds.

Chitin

A structural polysaccharide found in the exoskeletons of arthropods and cell walls of fungi, containing nitrogenous acetylglucosamine units.

Lipids

A class of hydrophobic organic macromolecules composed primarily of carbon and hydrogen, including fats, phospholipids, and steroids.

Hydrophobic

The property of nonpolar molecules that do not interact favorably with or dissolve in water.

Triglycerides

Lipid molecules composed of one glycerol molecule linked to three fatty acid chains by ester bonds.

Saturated Fatty Acids

Fatty acid chains containing no double bonds between carbon atoms, saturated with hydrogen atoms, typically solid at room temperature.

Unsaturated Fatty Acids

Fatty acid chains containing one or more double bonds between carbon atoms, resulting in kinks in the hydrocarbon chain, typically liquid at room temperature.

Phospholipids

Amphipathic lipids consisting of a glycerol backbone, two fatty acid tails, and a phosphate group, serving as the major structural component of cell membranes.

Amphipathic

Describing a molecule that possesses both hydrophilic (water-attracting) and hydrophobic (water-repelling) regions.

Steroids

A class of lipids characterized by a carbon skeleton composed of four fused rings, functioning as hormones and cell membrane components.

Cholesterol

An essential steroid component of animal cell membranes that modulates membrane fluidity and serves as a precursor for steroid hormones.

What is a carbonyl group at the end called?

Aldose

What is a carbonyl group in the middle called?

Ketose

Tritose

3 carbons

Pentose

5 carbons

Hexose

6 carbons

What is a hydroxyl group below the carbon called?

alpha

what is the hydroxyl group above carbon called?

beta