Organic Chemistry Overview

Organic Chemistry is one of several major branches within the field of chemistry. It deals with compounds containing carbon, which can form bonds with hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, phosphorous, sulfur, selenium, and tellurium. These atoms also allow for bonding with other elements like metals, halogens, and silicon. Organic molecules have a wide range of properties and exhibit different types of interactions between their components. They include biological molecules such as proteins, carbohydrates, nucleic acids, lipids, hormones, vitamins, enzymes, antibiotics, and pigments.

One unique aspect of organic chemistry is its emphasis on stereoisomers, where two compounds may have the exact same molecular formula but differ in how they arrange themselves in space due to varying arrangements of chiral centers. Examples include amino acids and sugars. Another significant feature involves the role of resonance structures, which describe the electron distribution around double bonds in conjugated systems by showing various possible distributions of electrons among them.

Organic chemists study many classes of compounds including alkanes, cycloalkanes, alcohols, ethers, ketones, carboxylic acid derivatives, esters, amines, halogenated compounds, aromatic hydrocarbon, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). Key reactions studied in organic chemistry include substitution, addition, elimination, rearrangement, and reduction reactions. Synthetic procedures cover techniques used to synthesize chemical products through physical or chemical means.

The study of organic chemistry has led to important discoveries in pharmaceuticals and medicine. For example, aspirin was discovered because it inhibits prostaglandins—a group of chemicals produced from arachidonic acid that cause inflammation, pain, fever, and other symptoms associated with conditions like asthma, arthritis, menstrual cramps, headaches, and heart disease. Vitamin C was found to protect us against scurvy when we don't get enough fresh fruits and vegetables. In summary, organic chemistry plays a vital role in understanding life processes, human health, and the environment, making it a fascinating subject to study.