Biology H - Macromolecules unit

Macromolecules

Large organic molecules

Organic molecules

Contain C and H

Monomers

Small molecules that can link together

Polymers

Big molecules made from many repeating monomers linked together

Carbohydrates

All of them have C, H and O (only); involves polymers

Lipids

All of them have C, H and O (and phospholipids have P as well); does not involve polymers

Proteins

All of them have C, H, O and N (and one amino acid has S as well); involves polymers

Nucleic acids

All of them have C, H, O, N and P; involves polymers

Condensation/Dehydration rxn

Taking away H2O to make bonds between monomers, making large polymers

Hydrolysis rxn

Adding H20 to break bonds between polymers, breaking them down into monomers again

Monomer of carbohydrates

Sugars

Monomer of proteins

Amino acids

Monomer of nucleic acids

Nucleotides

Covalent bond between two C rings in carbs

Glycosidic linkage

Covalent bond between the glycerol head and fatty acid tails in lipids

Ester linkage

Covalent bond between the N and C in amino acids

Peptide bond

Covalent bond between the OH group of a sugar (3’) and the Phosphate group of another sugar (5’)

Phosphodiester bond

Sugars’ main function

Quick energy

Empirical formula for most sugars

CH2O (1:2:1 ratio)

Monosaccharides

Sugars with one C in the molecule’s backbone (or ring if drawn as one)

Disaccharides

Sugars with two Cs in the molecule’s backbone (or ring if drawn as one)

Polysaccharides

Sugars with three or more Cs in the molecule’s backbone (or ring if drawn as one)

Polysaccharides’ function

Energy storage or structure

Most lipids are hydrophobic because…

They consist mostly of hydrocarbons, which make nonpolar covalent bonds

Lipids have 3 main categories:

Fats, Sterioids, Phospholipids

Fats

Molecules that are either unsaturated (no double bonds) or saturated (double bond(s) among fatty acid tails)

Fats’ main function

Energy storage

Composition of a fat

A Glycerol head connected to 3 fatty acid tails through an Ester linkage

Glycerol head composition

3 Carbon molecule, kind of alcohol

Fatty acid tail composition

Hydrocarbon chain (double bonded or not) with carboxyl group at its end

Phospholipids differ from fats through…

Having a phosphate group connected to its Glycerol head, and only 2 fatty acid chains

When put in water, phospholipids assemble into…

A phospholipid bilayer, with the tails pointing toward eachother and the heads facing outward (touching the water)

Steroids

Lipids characterized by 3-5 Carbons in their backbone

Cholesterol

Steroid found in animal cell membranes; slows down phospholipid movement in our cells and simultaneously avoids freezing.

Macromolecules are 3D, so…

Their arrangement doesn’t matter as long as the structure is kept the same

The DNA base sequence affects…

Amino base sequence

The amino base sequence affects…

Shape, which then affects function

Proteins are made up of….

Chains of amino acids

Enzymes

Large proteins that speed up rxns in animals

Polypeptides

Large amino acids

Amino acids composition

C, H, O, N (and one of the amino acids has S)

Amino acids differ by

R groups

Hemoglobin

(Transport) protein responsible for carrying oxygen from the lungs to the rest of the body (and vice-versa), and one change in the amino acid structure can lead to sickle cell anemia

Cell receptors

Proteins that get messages sent from hormones (such as insulin), and respond by transmitting it to the body

To find # of amino acids in a polypeptide…

Count amount of N atoms in backbone

Primary structure of proteins

Solely the amino acid sequence

Secondary structure of proteins

H bonds between carboxyl and amino groups of different amino acids

Alpha helix structure

Coiled secondary structure

Beta sheet structure

Folded secondary structure

Tertiary structure

Interactions between R groups (not involving any backbone constituents), which can be any bonds or interactions you have learned so far

Possible bonds in tertiary structure

Ionic, Covalent, Hydrogen, Hydrophobic/Hydrophilic, Disulfite Bridges (covalent bond between sulfhydryl groups), etc

Quartenary structure

Only happens if there is more than 1 polypeptide chain present, describes the arrangement of multiple of these structures (such as if they’re alpha chains or beta chains)

Nucleic acids function

Transmit hereditary information & conduct the making of proteins

DNA (directs making of RNA, only molecule that can replicate itself)

Deoxyribonucleic acid

RNA

Ribonucleic acid

Chromosomes can be broken into 2 different kinds:

Double or single stranded (l vs x)

Each nucleotide is made of…

a P group, a pentosugar and a nitrogenous base (either single or double)

The main difference between DNA and RNA is…

DNA is double stranded and RNA is single stranded

There are two families of nitrogenous bases:

Purines and pyrimidines

A purine is always attracted to (and vice versa)…

A pyrimidine

A phosphodiester bond creates a sugar…

phosphate backbone

Bond between DNA double helix structures

H bond