Biochemistry Overview Quiz

Biochemistry

• Biochemistry is the study of the chemical composition and reactions in living matter.
• Inorganic compounds do not contain carbon, with exceptions including CO₂, CO, and bicarbonates.
• Water is the most abundant and important inorganic material, making up 60-80% of cells and 2/3 of body weight.

Organic Compounds

• Organic compounds contain carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen.
• Carbon is found in living and once-living things.
• Carbon atoms share electrons to form covalent bonds.
• Organic compounds consist of hundreds to thousands of individual molecules.
• Monomers are the single molecules in a polymer.
• Polymers are long molecules formed by repeating patterns of monomers.

Functional Groups

• A functional group is a group of atoms that characterize the structure of organic compounds.
• Functional groups influence the properties of organic compounds.
• Three important functional groups are amine (NH₂), carboxyl (COOH), and hydroxyl (OH).

Macromolecules

• Four types of organic compounds (macromolecules) are carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, and nucleic acids.
• These macromolecules are essential for life processes, including cell function, energy storage, homeostasis, and genetic information storage.

Carbohydrates

• Carbohydrates form sugars and starches.
• They contain a hydroxyl (OH) group and atoms of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen.
• The ratio of atoms is 1C:2H:1O.
• Carbohydrates provide energy to cells and dissolve in water (hydrophilic).
• Carbohydrates are sized in three ways: monosaccharides, disaccharides, and polysaccharides.
• Monosaccharides are single sugars.
• Disaccharides are two sugars.
• Polysaccharides are many sugars linked together.
• Starch is a straight chain of glucose molecules with few branches, forming one type of polysaccharide.

Lipids

• Lipids include fats, oils, and waxes.
• They contain carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen.
• Lipids typically contain two monomers, glycerol and fatty acids.
• Glycerol contains the hydroxyl (OH) group.
• Fatty acids contain the carboxyl (COOH) group.
• Lipids store energy and provide padding & protection.
• Lipids do not dissolve in water (hydrophobic), although some parts can dissolve in water.
• The H:O ratio is higher in lipids than in carbohydrates.
• Phospholipids are lipids found in cell membranes with a hydrophilic head and hydrophobic tail.

Fatty Acids

• Fatty acids are long chains of carbon atoms with attached hydrogen atoms.
• Saturated fatty acids contain only single bonds between the carbon atoms.
• Unsaturated fatty acids contain one or more double or triple bonds between carbon atoms.

Proteins

• Proteins are the building materials of the body (hair, skin, muscles, organs).
• Proteins are composed of carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, and oxygen.
• Proteins contain amine (NH₂) and carboxyl (COOH) groups.
• The building blocks of proteins are amino acids.
• Amino acid chains are called polypeptides.
• A single protein can contain one or more polypeptide chains.
• Amino acids are connected by peptide bonds.
• Proteins like enzymes catalyze chemical reactions, speeding them up.
• Almost all biological processes rely on enzymes.
• Two types of proteins are fibrous and globular. Fibrous proteins are generally insoluble in water (e.g., hair, skin) while globular proteins are soluble in water (e.g., enzymes, hormones).
• Keratins are a family of fibrous proteins.

Amino Acids

• Amino acids consist of a carbon atom bonded to an amino group (NH₂), a carboxyl group (COOH), a hydrogen atom, and a variable side chain (R group).
• Different amino acids have different R groups, leading to unique properties.