Biological Molecules

Flashcards covering key vocabulary terms, structural components, and functional properties of the four major macromolecules based on the lecture.

Macromolecules

The four major classes of biological molecules that make up living organisms: nucleic acids, proteins, lipids, and carbohydrates.

Monomer

Small chemical building blocks that link together to construct larger biological molecules known as polymers.

Lipid

A biological molecule that is generally nonpolar, acts as a major energy source, forms cell membranes, and is not composed of repeating monomer chains.

Nucleic Acid

A biological macromolecule, such as DNA or RNA, that carries and transmits genetic material across generations.

Nucleotide

The building block monomer of nucleic acids, consisting of a five-carbon sugar, a phosphate group, and a nitrogenous base.

Protein

A biological macromolecule made of amino acid monomers that forms structural components and functional enzymes in organisms.

Amino Acid

The monomer building block of proteins, composed of a central carbon attached to a hydrogen, a carboxyl group, an amino group, and a variable R group.

R Group

The variable portion of an amino acid that differentiates it from others and determines its chemical properties, such as being polar, nonpolar, hydrophobic, or hydrophilic.

Carbohydrate

A biological macromolecule made of sugar monomers that provides organisms with energy and structural support.

Dehydration Synthesis

A chemical reaction that bonds monomers together to create polymers by losing a molecule of water ($H_2O$) and forming a covalent bond.

Hydrolysis

A chemical reaction that breaks polymers down into individual monomers through the addition of a molecule of water ($H_2O$).

Peptide Bond

The specific covalent bond formed between the amino group of one amino acid and the carboxyl group of another during dehydration synthesis.

Deoxyribose

The five-carbon sugar component present in the nucleotides of DNA.

Ribose

The five-carbon sugar component present in the nucleotides of RNA.

Anti-parallel

The structural arrangement of double-stranded DNA where the two complementary strands run in opposite directions relative to their 3' and 5' carbon ends.

Hydrocarbon Tail

A long chain of carbon and hydrogen atoms in lipids that stores significant energy and makes that region nonpolar.

Amphipathic

Describing a molecule, such as a phospholipid, that possesses both a polar (hydrophilic) region and a nonpolar (hydrophobic) region.

Saturated Fat

A fat containing hydrocarbon chains with single bonds and hydrogen atoms all around, creating a straight structure that is solid at room temperature.

Unsaturated Fat

A fat containing hydrocarbon chains with double bonds that produce bends or kinks, preventing dense packing and making it liquid at room temperature.

Trans Fat

A fat produced naturally or by adding hydrogen to unsaturated fats to straighten out their hydrocarbon chains.

Amylose

A linear carbohydrate polymer composed of glucose monomers that forms most of the starch in food such as spaghetti.

Glycogen

A highly branched carbohydrate polymer made of glucose monomers that forms a spherical structure in animal cells.

Chitin

A carbohydrate that serves a structural role in insects.

Cellulose

A structural carbohydrate that provides rigidity and support in plants.

Trypsin and Chymotrypsin

Two enzymes in the digestive system that break down protein polymers into individual amino acids by targeting different sides of the protein structure.