Unit 1: Chemistry of Life

• Disaccharide: A double sugar, consisting of two monosaccharides joined by dehydration synthesis.
• Monosaccharide: A single sugar molecule such as glucose or fructose, the simplest type of sugar.
• Polysaccharide: Carbohydrates that are made up of more than two monosaccharides
• Glycosidic Linkage: A covalent bond formed between two monosaccharides by a dehydration reaction.
• Starch: A storage polysaccharide in plants consisting entirely of glucose.
• Cellulose: A substance (made of sugars) that is common in the cell walls of many organisms
• Lipid Examples: fatty acids, fats, saturated fats, unsaturated fats, steroids, phospholipids, cholesterol, triglycerides
• Unsaturated Fat: A lipid made from fatty acids that have at least one double bond between carbon atoms.
• Saturated Fat: A lipid made from fatty acids that have no double bonds between carbon atoms
• Steroid: lipid molecule with four fused carbon rings
• Phospholipid: a lipid that contains phosphorus and that is a structural component in cell membranes
• Nucleotide: monomer of nucleic acids made up of a 5-carbon sugar, a phosphate group, and a nitrogenous base
• Nucleic Acid Examples: DNA, RNA, (ATP and ADP are modified nucleic acids)
• Protein Examples: amino acids, primary, secondary, tertiary, quaternary structures, collagen, hemoglobin, enzymes
• Triglyceride: a lipid made of three fatty acid molecules and one glycerol molecule
• Secondary Structure of a Protein: protein structure is formed by folding and twisting of amino acid chain
• Tertiary Structure of a Protein: protein structure is formed when the twists and folds of the secondary structure fold again to from a larger 3D structure
• Quaternary Structure of a Protein: protein structure is a protein consisting of more than one folded amino acid chain
• Disulfide Bridge: The covalent bond between two sulfur atoms (-S—S-) linking two molecules or remote parts of the same molecule.
• nucleic acid: kind of macromolecule that stores, transfers, and expresses genetic information
• Carbon, Hydrogen, Oxygen, Phosphorus, Nitrogen (CHOPN): elements that make up a nucleic acid
• nucleotide: monomer of nucleic acids made up of a 5-carbon sugar, a phosphate group, and a nitrogenous base
• RNA: ribonucleic acid; a polymer of nucleotides that transfers genetic information
• how RNA differs from DNA: the sugar in RNA is ribose; Uracil bonds with Adenine; RNA is single stranded
• Carbon, Hydrogen, Oxygen, Nitrogen (CHON): elements that make up a protein
• amino acid: building block (monomer) of proteins, composed of an amino group and a carboxyl group, a hydrogen atom, and an R-group
• structure of an amino acid: a carboxyl group, an amino group, a central Carbon, a Hydrogen, and an R-group
• properties the R-group may give the amino acid: hydrophilic or hydrophobic, polar or nonpolar, acidic or basic
• four levels of a proteins structure: primary structure, secondary structure, tertiary structure, quaternary structure
• lipids: macromolecule made of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen (CHO) that is mostly nonpolar not soluble in water;
• Carbon, Hydrogen, Oxygen (CHO): elements that makeup both Carbohydrates and Lipids
• fatty acid: building block of a lipid made of a hydrocarbon chain and a carboxyl group
• glycerol: a carbon alcohol that is hydrophilic
• functions of lipids: long-term energy storage, insulation, part of the cell membrane, chemical messenger, waterproofing
• phospholipid: lipid made of two hydrocarbon chains, glycerol, and a phosphate group
• hydrophobic tail: another name for the hydrocarbon chain in a phospholipid
• hydrophobic head: another name for the phosphate group in a phospholipid
• -ose: suffix carbohydrates usually end in (gluc-ose, fruct-ose)
• glycosidic linkage: covalent bond that forms between a monosaccharide and another molecule (like another monosaccharide)
• macromolecules: large organic molecules