Biological Molecules Overview
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Questions and Answers

The four main categories of large biological molecules present in living systems are _____

  • RNA, DNA, proteins, and carbohydrates
  • Proteins, DNA, RNA, and steroids
  • Nucleic acids, carbohydrates, monosaccharides, and proteins
  • Monosaccharides, lipids, polysaccharides, and proteins
  • Proteins, nucleic acids, carbohydrates, and lipids (correct)

    • The building blocks or monomers of nucleic acid molecules are called _____

  • DNA and RNA
  • Fatty acids
  • Nucleotides (correct)
  • Polysaccharides
  • Pyrimidines and purines

    • Starch is composed of ________

  • Branched amylopectin and branched amylose
  • Branched amylopectin and unbranched amylose (correct)
  • Unbranched amylopectin and unbranched amylose
  • Unbranched amylopectin and branched amylose

    • A dehydration reaction (or condensation reaction) is the process in which _____

    <p>Water molecules are produced as a polymer is formed from monomers</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What component of amino acid structure varies among different amino acids?

    <p>The components of the R group</p> Signup and view all the answers

    The characteristic that all lipids have in common is that _____

    <p>None of them dissolves in water</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which functional group(s) is (are) present in all amino acids?

    <p>An amino group (−NH2) and a carboxyl group (−COOH)</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is a macromolecule?

    <p>A giant molecule formed by the joining of smaller molecules, usually by a dehydration reaction.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Define polymer.

    <p>A long molecule consisting of many similar or identical monomers linked together.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Define monomers.

    <p>The subunit that serves as the building block of a polymer.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What are enzymes?

    <p>A macromolecule serving as a catalyst that increases the rate of a reaction without being consumed.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is a dehydration reaction?

    <p>A chemical reaction in which two molecules become covalently bonded to each other with the removal of a water molecule.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Define hydrolysis.

    <p>A chemical reaction that breaks bonds between two molecules by the addition of water.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What are carbohydrates?

    <p>A sugar (monosaccharide) or one of its dimers (disaccharide) or polymers (polysaccharide).</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What are monosaccharides?

    <p>The simplest carbohydrates, active alone or serving as a monomer for disaccharides and polysaccharides.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is a disaccharide?

    <p>A double sugar, consisting of two monosaccharides joined by glycosidic linkage.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is a glycosidic linkage?

    <p>A covalent bond formed between two monosaccharides by a dehydration reaction.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What are polysaccharides?

    <p>A polymer of many monosaccharides, formed by dehydration reactions.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is starch?

    <p>A storage polysaccharide in plants consisting entirely of glucose monomers joined by glycosidic linkages.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is glycogen?

    <p>An extensively branched glucose storage polysaccharide found in the liver and muscle of animals.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Define cellulose.

    <p>A structural polysaccharide of plant cell walls, consisting of glucose monomers joined by beta glycosidic linkages.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is chitin?

    <p>A structural polysaccharide consisting of amino sugar monomers found in many fungal cell walls and in the exoskeletons of all arthropods.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What are lipids?

    <p>Any of a group of large biological molecules, including fats, phospholipids, and steroids, that mix poorly, if at all, with water.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What constitutes a fat?

    <p>A lipid consisting of three fatty acids linked to one glycerol molecule.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Define fatty acid.

    <p>A carboxylic acid with a long carbon chain.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is triacylglycerol?

    <p>A lipid consisting of three fatty acids linked to one glycerol molecule.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Define saturated fatty acid.

    <p>A fatty acid in which all carbons in the hydrocarbon tail are connected by single bonds.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Define unsaturated fatty acid.

    <p>A fatty acid that has one or more double bonds between carbons in the hydrocarbon tail.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What are trans fats?

    <p>An unsaturated fat formed artificially during hydrogenation of oils.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is a phospholipid?

    <p>A lipid made up of a glycerol joined to two fatty acids and a phosphate group.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Define steroids.

    <p>A type of lipid characterized by a carbon skeleton consisting of four rings.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is cholesterol?

    <p>A lipid that forms an essential component of animal cell membranes.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Define gene.

    <p>A discrete unit of hereditary information consisting of a specific nucleotide sequence in DNA.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What are nucleic acids?

    <p>A polymer consisting of many nucleotide monomers; serves as a blueprint for proteins.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA)?

    <p>A nucleic acid molecule characterized by a double-stranded helix.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is ribonucleic acid (RNA)?

    <p>A type of nucleic acid usually single-stranded that plays a role in protein synthesis.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Define gene expression.

    <p>The process by which information encoded in DNA directs the synthesis of proteins.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What are polynucleotides?

    <p>A polymer consisting of many nucleotide monomers in a chain.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Define nucleotides.

    <p>The building block of a nucleic acid, consisting of a five-carbon sugar, a nitrogenous base, and phosphate groups.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is a pyrimidine?

    <p>One of two types of nitrogenous bases found in nucleotides, characterized by a six-membered ring.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What are purines?

    <p>One of two types of nitrogenous bases found in nucleotides, characterized by a six-membered ring fused to a five-membered ring.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Define deoxyribose.

    <p>The sugar component of DNA nucleotides with one fewer hydroxyl group than ribose.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is ribose?

    <p>The sugar component of RNA nucleotides.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is a double helix?

    <p>The form of native DNA, referring to its two adjacent polynucleotide strands wound into a spiral shape.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Define antiparallel.

    <p>Referring to the arrangement of the sugar-phosphate backbones in a DNA double helix.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is bioinformatics?

    <p>The use of computers, software, and mathematical models to process biological information.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Define genomics.

    <p>The systematic study of sets of genes and their interactions within a species.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is proteomics?

    <p>The systematic study of sets of proteins and their properties.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Study Notes

    Biological Molecules

    • Major categories include proteins, nucleic acids, carbohydrates, and lipids.
    • Nucleic acids are formed from monomers called nucleotides, which consist of a nitrogen base, a pentose sugar, and a phosphate group.

    Carbohydrates

    • Starch is composed of branched amylopectin and unbranched amylose.
    • Carbohydrates exist as monosaccharides, disaccharides, and polysaccharides, with monosaccharides being the simplest form.
    • Glycosidic linkages join monosaccharides, forming disaccharides and polysaccharides through dehydration reactions.

    Amino Acids

    • Amino acids consist of an amino group and a carboxyl group, with variability coming from the R group (side chain) of the amino acid.

    Lipids

    • Characteristic commonality among lipids is their hydrophobic nature; they do not dissolve in water.
    • Fats are composed of three fatty acids linked to glycerol, termed triacylglycerols or triglycerides.
    • Fatty acids can be saturated (single bonds) or unsaturated (one or more double bonds).
    • Phospholipids have hydrophilic heads and hydrophobic tails, important in forming cellular membranes.

    Enzymes

    • Enzymes are macromolecules that catalyze chemical reactions without being consumed, typically composed of proteins.

    Genetic Information

    • Nucleic acids include DNA and RNA, which are polymers of nucleotides serving as blueprints for protein synthesis.
    • DNA is characterized by its double-helix structure and contains deoxyribose sugar, while RNA includes ribose sugar and typically functions in protein synthesis.

    Molecular Structures

    • Polynucleotides are formed from nucleotide monomers, and they can be strands of DNA or RNA.
    • Antiparallel orientation refers to the opposite directionality of the sugar-phosphate backbone in the DNA double helix.

    Biochemical Techniques

    • Bioinformatics combines biology, computer science, and mathematics to analyze large biological data.
    • Genomics studies entire sets of genes within a species and their interactions.
    • Proteomics focuses on the properties, interactions, and abundance of proteins within a biological system.

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    Description

    This quiz covers the major categories of biological molecules, including proteins, nucleic acids, carbohydrates, and lipids. It explores their structures, components, and functions. Test your understanding of these essential biomolecules and their characteristics.

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