Condensation and hydrolysis reactions

• What are condensation reactions?

  Reactions where a water group is removed to form bonds between biological molecules
• What biological molecules are formed through condensation reactions?

  Polypeptides, polysaccharides, lipids, and nucleic acids
• What are hydrolysis reactions?

  Reactions where a water group is added to break a bond
• How do hydrolysis reactions relate to condensation reactions?

  Hydrolysis reactions are the opposite of condensation reactions
• What are DNA and RNA composed of?

  Polymers with many nucleotides joined together
• What type of bond is formed between nucleotides in DNA and RNA?

  A covalent phosphodiester bond
• What components are involved in the condensation reaction between nucleotides?


  The phosphate group of one nucleotide and the pentose sugar of the next nucleotide
• What is the sugar-phosphate backbone in DNA and RNA?

  A chain of phosphate groups and pentose sugars joined by phosphodiester bonds
• How many sugar-phosphate backbones does DNA have compared to RNA?

  DNA has two, while RNA has one
• What is the structure of a phosphodiester bond?

  • Consists of a phosphate group
  • Contains two ester bonds
• What are the key differences between DNA and RNA in terms of structure?

  • DNA: Double-stranded, two sugar-phosphate backbones
  • RNA: Single-stranded, one sugar-phosphate backbone
• Hydrolysis reaction is the breaking down of a large molecule into smaller ones by adding water (hydrol).
• Condensation reaction is the joining together of two molecules to form one larger molecule.