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MOLECULES OF LIFE

Study guide (KEY) 1. Life s molecules are organic compounds, with hydrogen and other elements covalently bonded to carbon atoms. 2. These include carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, and nucleic acids. 3. They are used as energy sources, structural materials, metabolic workers, and carriers of hereditary information. 4. Oxygen, hydrogen, and carbon are the most abundant elements in living things. 5. Much of the hydrogen and oxygen are linked as water. 6. Carbon can form four covalent bonds with other atoms to form organic molecules of several configurations. 7. The orientations of the atoms attached to a carbon backbone give rise to the three-dimensional shapes and functions of biological molecules. 8. A hydrocarbon, which has only hydrogen atoms attached to a carbon backbone, does not break apart easily; they form very stable, hydrophobic, portions of most biological molecules. 9. Functional groups (such as the OH of alcohols) are atoms or groups of atoms covalently bonded to a carbon backbone; they convey distinct properties, such as solubility, to the complete molecule. 10. Enzymes speed up specific metabolic reactions by these mechanisms. 11. Functional-group transfer: one molecule gives up a functional group, which another molecule accepts. 12. Electron transfer: one or more electrons stripped from one molecule are donated to another molecule. 13. Rearrangement: a juggling of internal bonds converts one type of organic compound into another. 14. Condensation: through covalent bonding, two molecules combine to form a larger molecule. 15. Cleavage: a molecule splits into two smaller ones. 16. In condensation reactions, small molecules can combine to form larger ones; for example, sugar monomers combine to form starch polymers. 17. In hydrolysis reactions, one larger molecule is split by the addition of H+ and OH (from water) into its components. 18. In methane seeps, methane bubbles upward from the ocean floor. 19. Methane gas is produced by archaea, which metabolize the rich organic matter. 20. Methane gas is produced by archaea, which metabolize the rich organic matter. 21. High water pressure and low temperature freeze the bubbling methane into an icy methane hydrate. 22. Methane hydrate deposits are vast and could break apart to release methane gas if the temperature rises. 23. Millions of years ago a huge release of methane might have occurred leading to a resulting increase in carbon dioxide levels.
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24. Indirectly, methane could have been responsible for mass extinctions of plants and animals. 25. A carbohydrate is a simple sugar or a larger molecule composed of sugar units.
26. 27. 28. 29. 30. 31. 32. 33. 34. 35. 36. 37. 38. 39. 40. 41. 42. 43. 44. 45. 46. 47. 48. 49. 50. 51. 52. 53. 54. 55. 56. 57. 58. 59. Carbohydrates are the most abundant biological molecules. Carbohydrates have structural roles and serve as forms of transportable and stored energy. A monosaccharide, one sugar unit, is the simplest carbohydrate. Simple sugars are soluble in water and may be sweet-tasting. Ribose and deoxyribose (five-carbon backbones) are building blocks for nucleic acids. Glucose (six-carbon backbone) is a primary energy source and precursor of many organic molecules. A disaccharide is a short chain resulting from the covalent bonding of two monosaccharides. Sucrose (table sugar) is glucose plus fructose. Lactose (milk sugar) is glucose plus galactose. Oligosaccharides may be attached to proteins where they have roles in membrane functions and immunity. A polysaccharide consists of many sugar units (same or different) covalently linked. The most common polysaccharides are chains of glucose. Starch (energy storage in plants) and cellulose (structure of plant cell walls) are made of glucose units but in different bonding arrangements. Glycogen is a storage form of glucose found in animal tissues. Chitin, which has nitrogen atoms attached to its backbone, is the main structural material in the external skeletons of arthropods. Lipids are characterized by their inability to dissolve in water. Lipids are composed mostly of hydrocarbon. They form the basic structures of membranes and have roles in energy metabolism. A fatty acid is a long, unbranched hydrocarbon with a COOH group at one end. Unsaturated fatty acids are liquids (oils) at room temperature because one or more double bonds between the carbons in the tails permit kinks. Saturated fatty acids have only single CC bonds in their tails and are solids at room temperatures. Triglycerides, such as butter, lard, and oils, are rich sources of energy These lipids have fatty acid tails attached to a molecule of glycerol. On a per weight basis, triglycerides yield more than twice as much energy as carbohydrates. Phospholipids have a glycerol backbone, two fatty acids, a phosphate group, and a small hydrophilic group. They are important components of cell membranes, where the hydrophilic heads face toward the inner and outer surfaces and the hydrophobic tails face inward. Waxes are special molecules with fatty acid chains attached to alcohols. They confer extraordinary waterproofing qualities. Sterols have a backbone of four carbon rings, but no fatty acids. Cholesterol is a component of cell membranes in animals and can be modified to form sex hormones. Proteins function as enzymes, in cell movements, as storage and transport agents, as hormones, as anti-disease agents, and as structural material throughout the body. Amino acids are small organic molecules with an amino group, an acid group, a hydrogen atom, and an R group. The twenty different R groups determine the twenty naturally-occurring amino acids. Primary structure is defined as the chain (polypeptide) of amino acids each linked together in a definite sequence by peptide bonds between an amino group of one unit and an acid group of another. Secondary structure is the helical coil or sheetlike array into which the polypeptide chain is formed by the interaction of hydrogen bonds, which join the side groups of the amino acids. Tertiary structure is the result of interactions among R groups that produce a complex threedimensional shape, such as is found in globular proteins. Quaternary structure describes the complexing of two or more polypeptide chains.

60. 61. 62.

Molecules of Life

63. Glycoproteins have side chains of oligosaccharides on the cell surface. 64. Lipoproteins bind and transport lipids. 65. Hemoglobin is a highly organized protein consisting of four polypeptides, each with a heme group that can bind an oxygen molecule. 66. In the normal beta polypeptide chain, the sixth amino acid in the sequence is glutamate, but a mutation can sometimes substitute a valine. 67. Most persons inherit two genes that place glutamate in both beta chains. 68. However, occasionally a mutated gene is inherited that will code for valine in position six; one gene is not a big problem to the individual. 69. If a person inherits two mutated copies of the gene, the defective hemoglobin will cause the red blood cells to be sickle-shaped, causing clumping and clogging of the capillaries they must negotiate. 70. High temperatures or chemicals can cause the three-dimensional shape to be disrupted. 71. Normal functioning is lost upon denaturation, which is often irreversible. 72. Nucleotides are small organic molecules. 73. Each nucleotide has a five-carbon sugar (ribose or deoxyribose), a nitrogen-containing base (single- or double-ringed), and a phosphate group. 74. Some nucleotides are involved in metabolism. 75. Adenosine phosphates are chemical messengers (cAMP) or energy carriers (ATP). 76. Nucleotide coenzymes transport hydrogen atoms and electrons (examples: NAD+ and FAD). 77. In nucleic acids, four different kinds of nucleotides are bonded together in large macromolecules. 78. RNA is single-stranded; it functions in the assembly of proteins 79. DNA is double-stranded; genetic messages are encoded in its base sequences.

Key Terms
organic compounds: The compounds containing carbon that are typically found in living systems. functional groups: a group of atoms responsible for the characteristic behavior of the class of compounds in which the group occurs, as the hydroxyl group in alcohols. alcohols, OH group present in the molecule. Examples: methanol (wood alcohol) and ethanol (grain alcohol) monomer: a molecule of low molecular weight capable of reacting with identical or different molecules of low molecular weight to form a polymer. Polymer: a compound of high molecular weight derived either by the addition of many smaller molecules, as polyethylene, or by the condensation of many smaller molecules with the elimination of water, alcohol, or the like, as nylon. Enzymes: any of various proteins, as pepsin, originating from living cells and capable of producing certain chemical changes in organic substances by catalytic action, as in digestion. condensation reaction: condensation reaction is a chemical reaction in which two molecules combine to form one single molecule, together with the loss of a small molecule.[1] When this small molecule is water, it is known as a dehydration reaction; hydrolysis: Decomposition of a chemical compound by reaction with water, such as the dissociation of a dissolved salt or the catalytic conversion of starch to glucose.

Molecules of Life

methane seeps: A type of cold seep (sometimes called a cold vent) is an area of the ocean floor where, methane and other hydrocarbon-rich fluid seepage occurs. methane hydrate: A crystalline combination of a natural gas and water (known technically as a clathrate) looks remarkably like ice but burns if it meets a lit match. Carbohydrate: Any of a group of organic compounds that includes sugars, starches, celluloses, and gums and serves as a major energy source in the diet of animals. These compounds are produced by photosynthetic plants and contain only carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen, usually in the ratio 1:2:1. Sugar: Sugar is an informal term for a class of edible crystalline substances, mainly sucrose, lactose, and fructose[1] characterized by a sweet flavor. Monosaccharides: a sugar not decomposable to simpler sugars by hydrolysis called also simple sugar Ribose: a white, crystalline, water-soluble, slightly sweet solid, C 5 H obtained by the hydrolysis of RNA. Deoxyribose: A sugar, C 5 H
10 10

O 5 , a pentose sugar

O 4 , that is a constituent of DNA.

Glucose: A monosaccharide sugar, C 6 H 12 O 6 , occurring widely in most plant and animal tissue. It is the principal circulating sugar in the blood and the major energy source of the body. Oligosaccharide:: A carbohydrate that consists of a relatively small number of monosaccharides. Disaccharide: Any of a class of sugars (as sucrose) that on hydrolysis yields two monosaccharide molecules called also biose double sugar sucrose: A crystalline disaccharide of fructose and glucose, C 12 H 22 O 11 , found in many plants but extracted as ordinary sugar mainly from sugar cane and sugar beets, widely used as a sweetener or preservative and in the manufacture of plastics and soaps.

Lactose: A disaccharide, C 12 H to yield glucose and galactose.

22

11

, found in milk, that may be hydrolyzed

Polysaccharide: Any of a class of carbohydrates, such as starch and cellulose, consisting of a number of monosaccharides joined by glycosidic bonds. Cellulose: an inert carbohydrate, (C 6 H 10 O 5 ) n , the chief constituent of the cell walls of plants and of wood, cotton, hemp, paper, etc.

Starch: A naturally abundant nutrient carbohydrate, (C 6 H 10 O 5 ) n , found chiefly in the seeds, fruits, tubers, roots, and stem pith of plants, notably in corn, potatoes, wheat, and rice, and varying widely in appearance according to source but commonly prepared as a white amorphous tasteless powder.
glycogen chitin
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lipids fats fatty acid unsaturated saturated triglyceride phospholipid waxes cutin sterols cholesterol proteins amino acid R group peptide bond amino group carboxyl group polypeptide chain primary structure secondary structure tertiary structure quaternary structure globular proteins hemoglobin glycoproteins lipoproteins fibrous proteins heme glutamate valine sickle-cell anemia denaturation nucleotide ATP coenzymes nucleic acids DNA RNA

Molecules of Life

Molecules of Life

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