Microorganism Metabolism & Atomic Structure

• Microorganism interactions among themselves and with their environment are determined by their metabolic abilities.
• Quorum sensing, oxygen consumption, and nitrogen transformations exemplify metabolic abilities.
• Microorganisms serve as essential models for understanding life processes.
• Chemistry involves the interaction between atoms and molecules.
• The metabolic activities of microorganisms involve complex chemical reactions.
• Microbes break down nutrients to obtain energy and create new cells.

The Structure of Atoms

• An atom represents the smallest unit of an element displaying that element's properties.
• The nucleus of atoms contain protons and neutrons, and electrons move around the nucleus.
• The atomic number signifies the number of protons in the nucleus.
• Atomic mass represents the total number of protons and neutrons in the nucleus.

Chemical Elements

• Atoms sharing a proton number and chemical behavior are classified as the same element.
• Elements are designated by chemical symbols.
• Living cells commonly contain about 26 elements.
• Isotopes are atoms with the same atomic number but varying atomic masses.

Electronic Configurations

• Electrons in an atom are arranged around the nucleus in electron shells.
• Each electron shell is characterized by a maximum electron capacity.
• The chemical properties of an atom are largely determined by the number of electrons in its outermost shell.

Organic Compounds

• Organic compounds invariably contain carbon and hydrogen.
• Carbon atoms are capable of forming up to four bonds with other atoms.
• Organic compounds usually are covalently bonded.
• A chain of carbon atoms form a carbon skeleton.
• Functional groups dictate most of the properties in organic molecules.
• "R" may denote the remainder of an organic molecule.
• Alcohols (R-OH) and organic acids (R-COOH) represent frequently encountered classes of organic molecules.
• Small organic molecules combine into macromolecules.
• Monomers bond via dehydration synthesis, or condensation reactions, that form water and a polymer.
• Organic molecules break down by hydrolysis, a reaction involving the splitting of water molecules.

Carbohydrates

• Carbohydrates consist of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen atoms, with hydrogen and oxygen in a 2:1 ratio.
• Monosaccharides contain three to seven carbon atoms.
• Isomers show the same chemical formula but different structures and properties; glucose (C6H12O6) and fructose (C6H12O6) are examples.
• Monosaccharides form disaccharides and polysaccharides through dehydration synthesis.

Lipids

• Lipids are a diverse group of compounds distinguished by their insolubility in water.
• Simple lipids (fats) consist of a molecule of glycerol and three molecules of fatty acids.
• Saturated lipids lack double bonds between carbon atoms in the fatty acids.
• Unsaturated lipids have one or more double bonds and lower melting points than saturated lipids.
• Phospholipids are complex lipids consisting of glycerol, two fatty acids, and a phosphate group.
• Steroids have carbon ring structures; sterols have a functional hydroxyl group.

Proteins

• Amino acids serve as the building blocks of proteins.
• Amino acids consist of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, and sometimes sulfur.
• Twenty amino acids occur naturally in proteins.
• Linking amino acids via peptide bonds (formed by dehydration synthesis) allows for the formation of polypeptide chains.
• Proteins possess primary (sequence of amino acids), secondary (helices or pleated), tertiary (overall three-dimensional structure of a polypeptide), and quaternary (two or more polypeptide chains) structures.
• Conjugated proteins consist of amino acids combined with inorganic or other organic compounds.

Nucleic Acids

• DNA and RNA are macromolecules consisting of repeating nucleotides.
• A nucleotide includes a pentose, a phosphate group, and a nitrogen-containing base.
• A nucleoside contains a pentose and a nitrogen-containing base.
• A DNA nucleotide contains deoxyribose (a pentose) and either thymine or cytosine or adenine or guanine nitrogen-containing bases.
• DNA consists of two nucleotide strands in a double helix connected by hydrogen bonds, AT and GC.
• Genes consist of sequences of nucleotides.
• An RNA nucleotide consists of ribose (a pentose) and either cytosine, guanine, adenine, or uracil as nitrogen-containing bases.

Adenosine Triphosphate (ATP)

• ATP stores chemical energy for cellular activities.
• Hydrolyzing the bond to ATP's terminal phosphate group releases energy.
• Energy from oxidation reactions regenerates ATP from ADP and inorganic phosphate.

Lesson explores microorganism interactions through metabolic abilities like quorum sensing, oxygen consumption, and nitrogen transformations. It also discusses atomic structure, elements, atomic number, and atomic mass.