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General Biology: Structure and Function of Large Biological Molecules

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Termini in questo insieme (31)

  • What are macromolecules and polymers?
    Macromolecules are large polymers made of many similar building blocks called monomers. Examples include carbohydrates, proteins, and nucleic acids.
  • What is a dehydration reaction?
    A dehydration reaction joins two monomers by removing a water molecule, forming a new covalent bond.
  • What is hydrolysis in biological molecules?
    Hydrolysis breaks down polymers into monomers by adding a water molecule, reversing dehydration.
  • What are monosaccharides?
    Monosaccharides are simple sugars with molecular formulas usually multiples of CH2O, classified by carbonyl location and carbon number.
  • How do sugars exist in aqueous solutions?
    Many sugars form ring structures in aqueous solutions, although often drawn as linear.
  • What is a glycosidic linkage?
    A glycosidic linkage is a covalent bond formed between two monosaccharides during a dehydration reaction.
  • What determines the function of polysaccharides?
    The function and architecture of polysaccharides depend on their sugar monomers and glycosidic linkage positions.
  • What is starch and its role?
    Starch is a plant storage polysaccharide made of glucose monomers, stored as granules in plastids.
  • What is glycogen and where is it stored?
    Glycogen is an animal storage polysaccharide stored mainly in liver and muscle cells, releasing glucose when needed.
  • How does cellulose differ from starch?
    Cellulose is a structural polysaccharide with β-glucose linkages, making it straight and unbranched, unlike helical starch with α-glucose.
  • Why can't humans digest cellulose?
    Humans lack enzymes to hydrolyze β linkages in cellulose, so it passes as insoluble fiber.
  • What is chitin and its function?
    Chitin is a structural polysaccharide in arthropod exoskeletons and fungal cell walls.
  • What are lipids and their common feature?
    Lipids are hydrophobic molecules that do not form true polymers and consist mostly of hydrocarbon regions.
  • What are fats composed of?
    Fats are made of glycerol and three fatty acids joined by ester linkages, forming triacylglycerols.
  • Difference between saturated and unsaturated fatty acids?
    Saturated fatty acids have no double bonds and max hydrogen; unsaturated have one or more double bonds causing kinks.
  • What is hydrogenation and its health impact?
    Hydrogenation converts unsaturated fats to saturated fats, creating trans fats that may increase cardiovascular disease risk.
  • What is the main function of fats?
    Fats primarily serve as long-term energy storage, cushioning organs and insulating the body.
  • Structure and function of phospholipids?
    Phospholipids have hydrophilic heads and hydrophobic tails, forming bilayers that create cell membrane boundaries.
  • What are steroids and their biological role?
    Steroids have four fused rings; cholesterol is a steroid important in cell membranes and precursor for other steroids.
  • What are proteins and their general functions?
    Proteins are polymers of amino acids with diverse functions including catalysis, defense, transport, and structural support.
  • What is an enzyme?
    An enzyme is a protein that acts as a catalyst to speed up chemical reactions.
  • What is the structure of amino acids?
    Amino acids have an amino group, carboxyl group, and a variable side chain (R group) that determines properties.
  • What is a peptide bond?
    A peptide bond is a covalent bond linking amino acids in a polypeptide chain.
  • What determines a protein's 3D structure?
    A protein's amino acid sequence (primary structure) determines its folding into secondary, tertiary, and quaternary structures.
  • What are the four levels of protein structure?
    Primary: amino acid sequence; Secondary: α helices and β sheets; Tertiary: 3D folding; Quaternary: multiple polypeptides.
  • What causes sickle-cell disease?
    A single amino acid substitution in hemoglobin's primary structure causes sickle-cell disease, altering protein function.
  • What is protein denaturation?
    Denaturation is the loss of a protein's native structure due to environmental changes, causing loss of function.
  • What are nucleic acids and their types?
    Nucleic acids are polymers of nucleotides; main types are DNA and RNA, which store and transmit genetic information.
  • What are nucleotides composed of?
    Nucleotides consist of a nitrogenous base, a pentose sugar, and one or more phosphate groups.
  • What is complementary base pairing in DNA?
    In DNA, adenine pairs with thymine, and guanine pairs with cytosine via hydrogen bonds.
  • How does RNA differ from DNA?
    RNA is single-stranded, uses ribose sugar, and uracil replaces thymine; it can form complementary pairs within itself.