Building Blocks of Life

Carbon is a non-metallic element that makes up all living things. The plants we eat contain certain carbon molecules that our bodies use in order to produce energy and to build and repair body structures.

Carbon has an atomic number of 6, which means that it has 6 protons in its nucleus, as well as 6 electrons in its outer shell. Carbon can form covalent bonds.

A hydrocarbon is a chain of carbon atoms bonded together covalently, sharing electrons.

Carbon chains are the backbones of biomolecules. Biomolecules are molecules such as carbohydrates, lipids, proteins and nucleic acid, that produced by all living things.

Macromolecules, molecules such as carbohydrates, lipids, proteins and nucleic acid are large molecules that contain different atoms.

Glucose is a simple sugar made up of six carbons

Carbohydrates, are biomolecules whose building blocks are simple sugars such as glucose and fructose. Carbohydrates are used to store energy for the body.

Sucrose, or table sugar, is a carbohydrate made of glucose and fructose bonded together.

Lipids are biomolecules made up of fatty acids. Like carbohydrates, lipids store energy. Cholesterol is a type of lipid found in cell membranes, that can be used to create hormones.

Proteins are biomolecules that are made up of amino acids as their building blocks. proteins preform many functions in the body, such as building and repairing structures, catalyzing chemical reactions and producing hormones.

Amino acids contain carbon, hydrogen, oxygen and nitrogen. The R-group is a specific chain of elements that is unique to each amino acid.

Nucleic acids are biomolecules that are made up of nucleotides as their building blocks. Nucleic acids store genetic material. DNA and RNA are example of nucleic acids. Nucleotides contain sugar, phosphorus, and nitrogen base.

All four chemicals have a backbone of carbon bonded to hydrogen and oxygen. Sonme biomolecules also contain nitrogen, phosphorus, and sulfur.

Organisms use biomolecules to produce substa