What is Eduard Buchner’s experiment with yeast fermentation implied in terms of biochemistry:
In 1897, Eduard Buchner discovered that yeast extract with no living yeast fungi can form alcohol from a sugar solution. The conclusion was that biochemical processes do not necessarily require living cells, but are driven by special substances, enzymes, formed in cells.
What are the four major classes of biological macromolecules?
Carbohydrates
Lipids
Protein
Nucleic Acids
Biological molecules are predominantly comprised of what elements?
Carbon, O, N, S, P, or H
What is the significance of functional groups?
Functional groups are specific molecular groups that bond to carbon-hydrogen cores
Define Isomer:
Molecules with the same molecular or empirical formula
Define Structural Isomer:
Differ in structure of carbon skeleton
Define Stereoisomer:
Differ in how groups are attached
Define Molecular formula
Describes what atoms and how many are in a molecule
What are the Monomers and Polymers in Carbohydrates?
Monomer: Monosaccharides
Polymers: Disaccharides and Polysaccharides
What are the Monomers and Polymers in Nucleic Acids?
Monomer: Nucleotides
Polymer: Nucleic Acids
What are the Monomers and Polymers in Proteins?
Monomer: Amino Acids
Polymer: Proteins
What are the Monomers and Polymers in Lipids?
Monomers: Glycerol and Fatty acids
Polymers: Triglycerides and Diglycerides
What reaction formed the bonds between monomers?
Dehydration synthesis is the formation of large molecules by the removal of water
Monomers are joined to from polymers
What reactions breaks down the bonds in polymers?
Hydrolysis is the breakdown of large molecules by the addition of water
Polymers are broken down to monomers
What is significant about fructose vs glucose?
Glucose is C_6 H_12 O_6
Fructose is a structural isomer of glucose
Galactose is a stereoisomer of glucose
What is Elemental composition?
refers to the proportion of each element present in a substance or sample
What is basic structure?
refers to the fundamental unit or arrangement of an organism or system
What is a Monomer?
Small, similar chemical subunits (simple building blocks)
What is a Polymer?
Build by linking monomers
What is the function of a Molecule?
A molecule serves as a stable structure formed by the combination of two or more atoms that determines the properties and behavior of substances in various chemical and biological processes
What are the bonds that holds Molecules together?
Covalent Bonds: This is a bond formed by the sharing of electron pairs between atoms.
Ionic Bonds: These are formed by the transfer of electrons from one atom to another.
Hydrogen Bonds: These are a type of weak bond that occurs when a hydrogen atom bonded to a strongly electronegative atom is attracted to another electronegative atom in a different molecule or a different part of the same molecule.
Van der Waals Bond: These forces are weaker than covalent, ionic, or hydrogen bonds but can be significant, especially in larger molecules.
What is the composition of a Nucleotide
sugar + phosphate + nitrogenous base
What are the different Nitrogenous Bases?
Purines: Adenine and Guanine
Pyrimidines: Thymine, Cytosine, Uracil
How does DNA differ from RNA?
RNA contains ribose sugar while DNA contains deoxyribose sugar
Includes the base uracil (U) instead of thymine (T)
What is the significance of ATP, NAD+, and FAD?
ATP is the primary energy currency of the cell.
NAD+ and FAD are the electron carriers for many cellular reactions
What type of biological molecules are ATP, NAD+, and FAD?
ATP is a nucleotide triphosphate
NAD+ is a dinucleotide
FAD is a dinucleotide
What is Primary Structure?
Is the sequence of amino acids
What is Secondary Structure?
Is the interaction of groups in the peptide backbone
What is Tertiary Structure?
Is the final folded shape of a globular protein; 3-D structure
What is Quaternary Structure?
Is the arrangement of individual chains (subunits) in a protein with two or more polypeptide chains.
Where are hydrophobic amino acids found in a protein?
Hydrophobic amino acids are found in the interior of the protein
Where are Hydrophilic amino acids found in a protein?
Hydrophilic amino acids are found along the exterior of the protein
What is the significance of Chaperone proteins and what happens when they are deficient?
Chaperone proteins help proteins fold correctly
Deficiencies in chaperone proteins are implicated in certain diseases
What is Protein Denaturation and what are the conditions that can lead to it?
Protein Denaturation is when a protein loses its tertiary structure by unfolding and thereby also its function due to environmental conditions such as:
pH
Temperature
Ionic concentration of solution
Differentiate between triglycerides, fatty acids, and phospholipids
Triglycerides are composed of one glycerol and three fatty acids
Fatty acids
Need to be identical.
Chain length varies
Saturated – no double bonds between carbon atoms
-Higher melting point, animal origin (usually solid at room temperature)
-Straight chained
Unsaturated – one or more double bonds
-Low melting point, plant origin (usually liquid at room temperature)
-Chain with a kink or bend in it