1.4: Properties of Biological Molecules

What is function related to?

structure

What does changing structure do?

change function

What is the basic structure of a nucleotide?

has 3 main subcomponents:

1) 5-carbon sugar

2) phosphate group

3) nitrogen base

What do nucleic acids store?

biological information

What is the difference between DNA and RNA?

They differ in the type of sugar contained (DNA has deoxyribose whilst RNA has ribose)

The nitrogen base contained in each can be different(DNA-A, G, C, or T as opposed to RNA-A, G, C, or U)

What do amino acids have?

directionality with an anime group(NH₂) at one end and a carboxyl group(COOH) at the other end

What is the variable part of an amino acid?

R group

What does the R group of an amino acid determine?

if the amino is hydrophobic, hydrophilic, or ionic

What distinguishes saturated from unsaturated fats?

saturated fats do not have a double bond between a carbon whilst unsaturated fats have a double bond between a carbon

How are phospholipids different from other lipids?

they contain both hydrophilic and hydrophobic regions

What is the function of a phospholipid?

it determines the lipids interaction with other molecules