Chemical reactions and Enzymes

Chemical reaction: a process that changes/tranforms one set of chemicals to another, mass and energy conserved, changes in chemical bonds

Reactants: elements/compounds that go into a chemical reaction

Products: elements/compounds produced by a chemical reaction

Absorb energy: need an energy source

Release energy: often occurs on their own

Energy sources: plants-photosynthesis, animals-food

Activation energy: energy needed to start a reaction

Catalyst: a substance that speeds up the rate of a chemical reaction

Enzymes: nature’s catalyst

Substrates: the reactants of enzyme-catalyzed reactions

Enzyme regulators: temperature, pH, regulatory molecules

Biomolecules: large organic molecules, extra-large ones are also known as macromolecules: carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, nucleic acids

Polymerization: smaller units (monomers) join to form polymers

Carbohydrates: carbon, hydrogen, oxygen; sources of energy or structural/storage purposes for living things

Monosaccharides: simple sugars

Complex carbohydrates: polysaccharides; many monosaccharides together

Lipids: carbon and hydrogen; store energy; anti-water fats, oils, and waxes

Nucleic Acids: polymers assembles from monomers and known as nucleotides, store and transmit hereditary/genetic information

• Nucleotides: 5-carbon group, phosphate group, nitrogenous

Proteins: amino acids/polypeptide chains; control rate of reactions, regulate cell processes, form important cellular structures, transport substance in/out of cells

Amino acids: amino group on one end of carboxyl group on the other peptide bonds link them together to form a polypeptide

4 protein structures:

1. sequence of amino acids

2. folding/coiling of polypeptide chain

3. complete 3-D polypeptide chain

4. Chain describing how multiple chains are arranged