Biochemistry 1: General Chemistry, Organic Chemistry, and Cell Biology

Matter

Anything that has mass and volume.

Element

A pure substance made of only one type of atom.

Compound

A substance made of two or more types of atoms that are chemically bonded.

Mixture

A combination of two or more types of substances that can be physically separated, classified as homogeneous (solutions) or heterogeneous (suspensions or colloids).

Molecule

A type of compound in which the chemical bonds are covalent bonds.

Atomic Number

The number of protons contained in the nucleus of an atom.

Mass Number

The total number of protons and neutrons in the nucleus of an element.

Periodic Law

The principle stating that the chemical and physical properties of elements are periodic functions of their atomic numbers.

Electronegativity

The ability of an atom in a chemical bond to attract shared electrons to itself.

Ionic Bond

A strong attractive interaction between a positively charged ion and a negatively charged ion.

Covalent Bond

A strong bond formed when a pair of electrons is equally shared between two atoms without metal or ion involvement.

Hydrogen Bond

A weak attractive interaction between a positively charged hydrogen atom and a neighboring electronegative atom.

Van der Waals Forces

Weak attractive interactions between nonpolar atoms arising from transient induced dipoles.

Coordinate Covalent Bond

A covalent bond formed when one atom donates both electrons in the shared pair.

VSEPR Model

Valence Shell Electron Pair Repulsion model, stating that repulsion between electron pairs around a central atom determines the shape of the molecule.

Hydrocarbons

Molecules that contain only hydrogen and carbon atoms, categorized into aliphatic and cyclic structures.

Isomers

Compounds that have the same molecular formula but different structural formulas, leading to unique chemical and physical properties.

Functional Groups

Specific combinations of added atoms (such as oxygen or nitrogen) that change the physical and chemical properties of organic molecules.

Biochemistry

The science concerned with the various molecules that occur in living cells and organisms, and with their chemical reactions.

Protoplasm

An enormously complex mixture of organic compounds inside the living cell where high levels of chemical activity occur.

Homeostasis

The self-regulatory mechanisms that living organisms use to maintain stable internal conditions within necessary limits.

Condensation Reaction

A reaction in which a molecule of water is removed as two monomers are connected together to form a polymer.

Hydrolysis

A reaction in which a water molecule is added along with an enzyme to split a polymer into two smaller units.

Cytoskeleton

A network of protein filaments, fibers, and tubules consisting of microfilaments, microtubules, and intermediate filaments that provides structural support and helps move cell components.

Nucleolus

A site within the nucleus responsible for rRNA synthesis and the assembly of ribosomes.