Naturally occurring polymers

• What are naturally occurring polymers?

  Polymers that exist naturally in the environment
• What are polymers made of?

  Long chains of smaller molecules called monomers
• What are polypeptides made of?

  Lots of amino acids
• What is DNA made of?

  Nucleotides
• What are carbohydrates made of?

  Only carbon, oxygen, and hydrogen
• What happens when amino acids combine in a long chain?

  They form a polypeptide
• What do we call a folded polypeptide?

  A protein
• What roles do proteins play in the body?

  Catalyzing reactions and providing structure
• What are the important functional groups in an amino acid?

  A carboxyl group and an amino group
• What is the central carbon in an amino acid connected to?

  Carboxyl group, amino group, and R group
• What is the R group in an amino acid?

  A variable group that changes with each amino acid
• How do amino acids join to form a polymer?

  Through condensation reactions
• What do the carboxylic acid and amino groups produce during condensation reactions?

  Water
• What is another name for the bond formed between amino acids?

  Peptide bond
• What is the general formula for the reaction of amino acids forming a polymer?

  Amino acid + amino acid → repeat unit + H2O
• What do nucleotides contain that is crucial for DNA?

  A base
• What are the monomers of DNA called?

  Nucleotides
• What are the four types of bases in DNA?

  T, A, G, and C
• How does DNA maintain its structure?

  Two polymer chains linked together
• What shape does DNA form?

  A double helix
• What are polysaccharides?

  Polymers made from monosaccharides
• What are monosaccharides commonly known as?

  Sugars
• How can we create polysaccharides from monosaccharides?

  By combining glucose molecules
• What are the key points about naturally occurring polymers?

  • Exist naturally in the environment
  • Made of long chains of monomers
  • Examples: polypeptides, DNA, carbohydrates
• What are the structures and functions of the three main types of naturally occurring polymers?

  1. Polypeptides:

  • Made of amino acids
  • Fold to form proteins
  • Functions: catalyze reactions, provide structure

  1. DNA:

  • Made of nucleotides
  • Forms double helix
  • Codes for genes

  1. Carbohydrates:

  • Made of carbon, oxygen, hydrogen
  • Includes polysaccharides (starch, cellulose, glycogen)
  • Monosaccharides (glucose, fructose)