Macromolecules to Genomics - Unit 5

Vocabulary flashcards covering the key terms and concepts across macromolecules, carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, nucleic acids, and genomics/proteomics as described in the notes.

Macromolecules

The largest and most important molecules that make up living things (carbs, lipids, proteins, nucleic acids).

-made up of polymers

Polymers

Large molecules formed from many similar or identical building blocks linked by covalent bonds. (think about train analogy)

Monomers

Repeating building blocks of polymers; some have independent functions.

Dehydration reaction

A reaction that connects monomers by forming a covalent bond with the loss of a water molecule.

Hydrolysis

A reaction that breaks polymers into monomers by adding water.

-used to digest food into molecules the body can use

Enzymes

Specialized macromolecules that speed up chemical reactions, including polymer formation and breakdown.

Carbohydrates

Sugars and their polymers; provide fuel and building material.

Monosaccharide

Simple sugar; basic unit of carbohydrates, usually in multiples of CH2O; may be aldose or ketose.

Aldose

A monosaccharide with an aldehyde functional group.

Ketose

A monosaccharide with a ketone functional group.

Disaccharide

Double sugar formed when two monosaccharides join by a glycosidic linkage via dehydration.

Glycosidic linkage

Covalent bond joining monosaccharides in carbohydrates.

Sucrose

A disaccharide used to transport carbohydrates from roots to leaves.

Polysaccharide

Polymers of sugars; used for energy storage or structural material.

Starch

Plant storage polysaccharide; mainly amylose (linear) and amylopectin (branched).

Amylose

Simple, linear form of starch composed of glucose units.

Amylopectin

Branched form of starch; more complex structure.

Glycogen

Animal storage polysaccharide of glucose; highly branched; stored in liver and muscles.

Cellulose

Major structural component of plant cell walls; polymer of glucose with beta linkages.

Chitin

Carbohydrate in arthropod exoskeletons and fungi; contains nitrogen.

Alpha linkage

Glycosidic linkage in which the OH group is on the opposite side of the ring (alpha) in many sugars.

Beta linkage

Glycosidic linkage in which the OH group is on the same side as the ring (beta); affects digestibility.

Microfibrils

Straight, non-branched cellulose molecules that bundle to form plant cell walls.

Lipids

Hydrophobic, mostly nonpolar molecules do not dissolve well in water.

Fats

Energy-storing lipids made of glycerol and fatty acids; form triglycerides via ester bonds.

-formed via ester linkages (dehydration)

-store twice as much energy as sugars

animals store in long term adipose cells

Glycerol

Alcohol backbone of fats (trihydric alcohol).

Fatty acids

Long hydrocarbon chains that terminate in a carboxyl group.

Saturated fat

Fatty acids with no double bonds; straight tails; typically solid at room temp.

Unsaturated fat

Fatty acids with one or more double bonds; kinked tails; typically liquid at room temp.

Cis double bond

Double bond causing a kink in the fatty acid tail.

Trans fats

Fats with trans double bonds; linked to heart disease; often industrially produced.

Phospholipids

Major membrane lipids with two fatty acids, a glycerol, and a phosphate group; form bilayers.

Phospholipid bilayer

Two-layer sheet forming a cell membrane with hydrophobic tails inward and hydrophilic heads outward.

Steroids

Lipids with four fused carbon rings; differentiated by functional groups; cholesterol is a common example.

Cholesterol

A steroid vital in animals; precursor to other steroids and influences membrane fluidity.

Proteins

Biologically functional molecules made of one or more polypeptides.

Amino acid

Monomer of proteins; contains an amino group, a carboxyl group, a central carbon, and an R group.

Peptide bond

Bond between amino acids formed by dehydration reaction; creates polypeptide backbone.

Polypeptide

Polymer of amino acids; folds into a protein.

Primary structure

Linear sequence of amino acids in a protein.

Secondary structure

Local folding patterns (alpha helix and beta pleated sheet) stabilized by hydrogen bonds.

Alpha helix

Right-handed coiled structure stabilized by hydrogen bonds every fourth amino acid.

Beta pleated sheet

Structure with beta strands laid next to each other, stabilized by hydrogen bonds.

Tertiary structure

Three-dimensional shape of a protein; stabilized by side-chain interactions and disulfide bridges.

Disulfide bridge

Covalent bond between cysteine side chains that helps stabilize tertiary structure.

Quaternary structure

Overall structure from the assembly of multiple polypeptide subunits.

Denaturation

Unraveling of a protein, leading to loss of function due to pH, temperature, or salts.

Nucleic acids

Polymers that store and transmit genetic information (DNA and RNA).

Nucleotide

Monomer of nucleic acids; consists of a sugar, a phosphate group, and a nitrogenous base.

Nucleoside

Nucleotide component without the phosphate group.

Nitrogenous bases

Purines (A, G) and pyrimidines (C, T in DNA; C, U in RNA).

Phosphodiester bond

Bond linking nucleotides to form the sugar–phosphate backbone.

DNA structure

Double helix; antiparallel strands; base pairing A-T and C-G; 5' to 3' direction.

RNA structure

Typically single-stranded; sugar is ribose; bases A, U, C, G.

mRNA

Messenger RNA; carries genetic code from DNA to ribosomes for protein synthesis.

tRNA

Transfer RNA; brings amino acids to ribosomes during translation.

Genomics

analyzing large sets of genes or comparing genomes of different species

Proteomics

analysis of large sets of proteins and it sequencing

Bioinformatics

Use of computational tools to analyze large biological data sets.

enzyme

type of proteins that regulates catalysts

catalyst

speed up reactions and are not consumed in the reaction

hydrogenated

tranforms saturated fats to saturated one by addin hydrogen

why are carbs so diverse?

• the carbon skeleton can be 3 to 7 carbons long with differing sizes of rings

• arrangement around asymmetric carbons