Biomolecules🧠🧬🩰🎀🌸

• There are certain complex organic molecules which form the basis of life
• These substances are part of the chemical composition of all living organisms
• These substances are required for their growth, maintenance and even for survival in extreme environment conditions
• Biomolecules


  The substances that are part of the chemical composition of all living organisms and are required for their growth, maintenance and survival
• Main classes of biomolecules

  • Carbohydrates
  • Proteins
  • Lipids
  • Nucleic acids
• Macromolecules


  Large molecules composed of thousands of covalently connected atoms
• Most common elements in biomolecules

  • Carbon
  • Hydrogen
  • Oxygen
  • Nitrogen
  • Phosphorus
  • Sulfur
• The letters CHNOPS or CHONSP stand for the chemical abbreviations of the names of these elements
• These are called CHNOPS elements; the letters stand for the chemical abbreviations of Carbon, Hydrogen, Nitrogen, Oxygen, Phosphorus, and Sulfur.

  There are four major classes of Biomolecules Carbohydrates, Proteins, Nucleic acids and Lipids.
• Give the elements of macromolecules
• Carbohydrates


  Molecules comprised of carbon (C), hydrogen (H), and oxygen (O)
• Carbohydrates


  Can range in size from very small to very large
• Monomers


  Single units that carbohydrates are built from
• Polymers


  Long strings of monomers that carbohydrates form
• Carbohydrates


  • Sugars found in milk (lactose)
  • Table sugar (sucrose)
• Carbohydrates


  Chemically defined as polyhydroxy aldehydes or ketones or compounds which produce them on hydrolysis
• Carbohydrates


  Acknowledged as sugars or substances that taste sweet
• Saccharides


  (Greek: sakcharon sugar)
• Depending on the number of sugar units

  • Monosaccharides
  • Disaccharides
  • Polysaccharides
• Monosaccharides


  1 sugar unit
• Oligosaccharides


  1. 10 sugar units
• Polysaccharides


  More than 10 sugar units
• Types of carbohydrates


  • Monosaccharides
  • Oligosaccharides
  • Polysaccharides
• Carbohydrates


  • Excellent source of energy for the many different activities going on in our cells
  • Some have a structural function
• Structural function of carbohydrates


  • The material that makes plants stand tall and gives wood its tough properties, is a polymer form of glucose known as cellulose
• Stored forms of energy carbohydrates

  • Starch (found in plant products such as potatoes)
  • Glycogen (found in animals)
• Proteins


  Another class of indispensable biomolecules, which make up around 50 percent of the cellular dry weight
• Proteins

  • Comprised of the elements carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, hydrogen and sometimes sulfur
  • Polymers of amino acids, arranged in the form of chain called polypeptide
  • Depending on how the structure of a protein is arranged, it gives rise to a certain level of structural organization (primary, secondary, tertiary and quaternary)
• Structural roles of proteins


  Help form many of the structural features of the body including hair, nails and muscles
• Dynamic roles of proteins

  • Myosin is the protein that allows movement by contraction of muscles
  • Present as a major component of cell membranes
  • Act as carriers or channels, facilitating the movement of ions and molecules in and out of the cells
  • Maintain proper concentration of ions like sodium, potassium and chloride, and molecules like glucose for cells to function normally
  • Act as catalysts, with a large group known as enzymes enabling the cells to carry out chemical reactions fast
• In order for the organism to maintain growth and survival, the food being consumed must be converted to energy at an appreciable rate
• Lipids


  A wide variety of biomolecules including fats, oils, waxes and steroid hormones
• Lipids

  • They do not dissolve in water, they are hydrophobic
  • The hydrophobic nature of the lipids dictates many of their uses in biological systems
  • They are composed primarily of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, phosphorus and sulfur (lipids also contain nitrogen in some cases)
• Lipids

  • Fats
  • Oils
  • Waxes
  • Steroid hormones
• Fats

  A good source of stored energy
• Oils and waxes


  Used to form protective layers on our skin, preventing infection
• Steroid hormones


  Important regulators of cell activity
• Activities of steroid hormones such as estrogen


  Have been implicated in cancers of the female reproductive system
• Nucleic Acids


  Naturally occurring chemical compounds that can be broken down to yield phosphoric acid, sugars, and a mixture of organic bases (purines and pyrimidines)
• Nucleic Acids


  • They are the main information-carrying molecules of the cell
  • They determine the inherited characteristics of every living thing
  • They are comprised of the elements carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, phosphorus and nitrogen