BIOLOGICAL MACROMOLECULES

Biological Macromolecules

Polymers built from monomers that include carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, and nucleic acids.

Monomers

Small building-block molecules that combine to form polymers.

Polysaccharides

Polymers composed of many sugar building blocks called monosaccharides.

Dehydration synthesis

The process of joining two monomers by losing a water molecule.

Hydrolysis

The process of breaking down polymers into monomers using water.

Monosaccharides

The simplest carbohydrates, typically have molecular formulas that are multiples of $CH_2O$.

Disaccharides

Formed when two monosaccharides are joined by a dehydration reaction, connected by a glycosidic linkage.

Glycogen

A storage polysaccharide in animals, more branched than amylopectin.

Cellulose

A major component of plant cell walls, a polymer of glucose with differing glycosidic linkages.

Chitin

A structural polysaccharide found in the exoskeleton of arthropods and in fungi.

Fats

Constructed from glycerol and fatty acids, primarily for energy storage.

Phospholipids

Molecules with two fatty acids and a phosphate group attached to glycerol, forming the bilayer in cell membranes.

Steroids

Lipids characterized by a carbon skeleton consisting of four fused rings.

Proteins

Polymers built from amino acids, accounting for more than 50% of the dry mass of most cells.

Amino acids

Organic molecules with carboxyl and amino groups that act as the building blocks of proteins.

Polypeptides

Polymers of amino acids that form proteins when twisted, folded, and coiled.

Denaturation

The loss of a protein's native structure due to changes in physical or chemical conditions.

Chaperonins

Protein molecules that assist in the proper folding of other proteins.

Primary Structure

The unique sequence of amino acids in a protein.

Secondary Structure

Coils and folds in the polypeptide chain, including alpha helices and beta pleated sheets.

Tertiary Structure

The overall 3D shape of a polypeptide determined by interactions between R groups.

Quaternary Structure

The structure formed when two or more polypeptide chains form one macromolecule.