biological molecules

• adhesion


  a property of water molecules that creates an attraction between them and surfaces that they are in contact with
• amino acid


  the monomers containing an amino group (NH2 ), a carboxyl group (COOH) and a variable R group that make up proteins
• amylopectin


  a branched polysaccharide made up of alpha glucose monomers joined by α-1,6 glycosidic bonds that makes up starch along with amylose
• amylose


  an unbranched polysaccharide made up of alpha glucose monomers joined by α-1,4 glycosidic bonds that makes up starch along with amylopectin
• anions


  an ion with a negative charge
• benedict's test 


  a biochemical test used to detect the presence of a reducing sugar in a solution and distinguish between solutions of different reducing sugar concentrations
• biuret test 


  a biochemical test that produces a purple colour when it is added to a solution containing protein
• cations 


  an ion with a positive charge
• cellulose


  a linear polysaccharide that is the main component of the cell wall in plants and is made up of many beta glucose molecules joined by β-1,4 glycosidic bonds
• chromatography


  a technique used to separate different molecules in a solution by their different properties
• cohesion


  a property of water molecules that creates an attraction between them which causes them to stick together
• collagen


  a type of fibrous protein that provides strength to many different cell types and makes up connective tissues
• condensation reaction


  a type of reaction that joins two molecules together with the formation of a chemical bond involving the elimination of a molecule of water
• conjugated protein 


  a protein with a prosthetic group bound to it
• elastin


  a type of fibrous protein that allows tissues and structures like blood vessels to stretch and return to their original shape
• fibrous protein


  a class of long chain proteins that are generally insoluble in water and typically have structural roles
• globular protein


  a class of spherical shaped proteins that are generally water soluble and typically have metabolic roles
• glucose


  a hexose monosaccharide that is the main respiratory substrate in eukaryotes
• glycogen


  a highly branched polysaccharide that is used as the main energy storage molecule in animals and is made up of alpha glucose monomers joined by α-1,4 glycosidic bonds
• haemoglobin


  a type of conjugated globular protein used to transport oxygen that is made up of four polypeptide chains each containing a haem prosthetic group
• hexose monosaccharide


  a simple sugar that contains 6 carbon atoms
• hydrogen bond


  a type of weak bond formed between an electropositive hydrogen and an electronegative atom like oxygen or nitrogen
• hydrolysis


  breaking a chemical bond between two molecules involving the use of a water molecule
• insulin


  a globular protein hormone that is made in the pancreas in response to detection of high glucose levels in the blood
• iodine test 


  a biochemical test that produces a blue/black colour when it is added to a solution containing starch
• keratin


  a type of fibrous protein that provides strength to hair and nails
• lactose


  a disaccharide made of a molecule glucose and galactose joined by a glycosidic bond
• lipid emulsion test


  a biochemical test that produces a cloudy emulsion when performed on lipids
• maltose 


  a disaccharide made of two molecules of glucose joined by a glycosidic bond
• monomer


  an individual unit that can be bonded to other identical monomers to make a polymer
• monomers


  the smaller units from which larger molecules are made
• pentose monosaccharide


  a simple sugar that contains 5 carbon atoms
• phospholipid


  a type of amphipathic lipid made from a molecule of glycerol bonded to two fatty acid molecules and a phosphate group
• polymer


  a molecule made from many repeating monomers joined together
• polymers


  monomers made from a large number of monomers joined together
• primary structure


  the individual sequence of amino acids in a protein
• quaternary structure 


  a structure only applicable to proteins with multiple polypeptide chains that describes the interactions of the different chains
• ribose 


  a pentose monosaccharide which composes the backbone of RNA
• saturated fatty acid


  a type of fatty acid molecule containing only single bonds between the carbon atoms.
• secondary structure 


  the local interactions of the amino acids in the polypeptide chain