Biomolecules

• Biomolecules - building blocks of life and perform important functions in living organisms.
• Monomer - building block, usually referring to same type of “block” that makes up something larger
• Carbon - it is the basis of all organic compounds.
• Catenation - atoms bond readily with other carbon atoms through the process, allowing the creation of long macromolecules and polymers
• 3 Catenation Chains - Straight, Branched, Ring or Cycled
• Types of Macronutrients - Carbohydrates, Lipids, Proteins, Nucleic Acids
• Macronutrients - the nutrients we need in larger quantities that provide us with energy (CHONPS)
• CHONPS - Carbon, Hydrogen, Oxygen, Nitrogen, Phosphorus, Sulfur
• Organic compounds - molecules that are made up of carbon covalently bonded to other atoms
• Inorganic compounds - compounds that do not contain carbon-hydrogen bonds
• Functional groups - a group of atoms in a molecule with distinctive chemical properties, regardless of the other atoms in the molecule
• Macromolecules - biomolecules that are large and complex, such as proteins and nucleic acids
• Dehydration Reaction - removes water as two molecules are bonded together
• Hydrolysis - water helps break the bond between molecules, releasing energy
• Enzymes - specialized macromolecules that speed up reactions in cells
• Carbohydrates (CHO) - main source of energy of living organisms
• Monosaccharides - monomer of carbohydrates (simple sugars)
• Disaccharides - two monosaccharides linked together
• Polysaccharides - large molecules made up of many monosaccharides joined together
• Types of polysaccharides - cellulose, starch, glycogen, chitin
• Sucrose - most common disaccharide (glucose+ fructose)
• Examples of monosaccharides - glucose, fructose
• Starch - storage polysaccharide in plants, made of alpha glucose
• Glycogen - where animals store glucose as a polysaccharide
• Cellulose - a polysaccharide made of beta glucose in plants
• Chitin - a polysaccharide that is a structural component of exoskeletons
• Lipids (CHO) - energy storage, protection, insulation and lubrication for our body (hydrophobic)
• Glycerol and fatty acids - monomers of lipids
• Classification of lipids - fat, wax, phospholipids, steroids
• Fat - also known as triglycerides made up of glycerol and fatty acids
• Unsaturated fatty acid - A fatty acid with one or more double bonds between carbon atoms.
• Saturated fatty acid - A fatty acid with a single carbon-carbon double bond
• Waxes - A group of lipids that are insoluble in water; found in protective coating of leaves, ears of animals, and honeycombs
• Phospholipids - made up of fatty acids, an alcohol, phosphoric acid, and a nitrogenous base
• Steroids - processing properties of lipids
• Cholesterol - most common steroid
• Proteins (CHON) - macronutrient that is essential to building muscle mass
• Amino Acids - monomer of proteins
• Peptide bond - A covalent bond between an amino acid and a carboxyl group
• Polypeptide - a long chain of amino acids joined together by peptide bonds