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Name ______________________________________________ Per. _____ Date ___________________
Molecular Modeling
Background Information: Of the six elements in CHONPS, the four most common elements found in
living things are:
H – hydrogen (found in its own group with ______ valence electron)
O- oxygen (found in group _____ with _____ valence electrons)
N- nitrogen (found in group _____ with _____ valence electrons)
C- carbon (found in group _____ with _____ valence electrons)
Carbon is the most important element found in living things because…
___ Carbon can bond with up to 4 other elements
___ Carbon can bond to other carbons to make chains, branches, and rings!
___ Carbon can have single, double, or triple bonds!
Carbon is found in a diverse array of molecules with different shapes. In biochemistry, it is the overall
shape of the molecules that is important. Cells tell different molecules apart by comparing their shape.
An important part of organic chemistry (the chemistry of carbon) is learning how these important
molecules are built.
You will be using a molecular modeling kit to build organic and inorganic molecules. The finished models
clearly show the shape of the finished molecule which is important to its function.
New terms:
monomer= smaller molecules that make up a longer chain called a polymer
polymer= long chains of repeating units (monomers)
Lab Objective: To help you become familiar with the basic structure of common molecules important to
organic chemistry.
Pre-lab questions:
1. What are the four most important elements in living things?
2. Why is carbon such an important element?
3. Why does the shape of the molecules found in your body matter so much?
4. Which biochemicals (molecules of life) contain polymers?
Part 1: Chemistry Review
1. Complete the following table
Element
Color
Hydrogen
Yellow
Oxygen
red
Nitrogen
blue
Carbon
black
Chemical Symbol
Number of bonds
element can make
2. Draw a Lewis Diagram (dots) and a structural diagram (lines) for the following molecules:
a. Methane-CH4
b. Carbon Dioxide-CO2
b. Water-H20
d. Ammonia-NH3
3. Using your molecule model kit, build each of these large molecules. For double bonds, use the
longer, flexible connectors found in the model kit. After building all the basic molecules, have
your teacher initial your lab sheet.
a. Proteins- The building blocks of proteins are amino acids. There are twenty that commonly
occur in nature and build proteins. Build one of them:
Alanine
Initials ___________
What are the functions of proteins in your body (see text Pgs. 316- see hemoglobin)?
b. Lipids- Lipids or fats are easy to make because they all have long chains of carbon and hydrogen.
They come in two varieties, saturated and unsaturated.
Construct the following:
i.
Saturated fat
ii.
Unsaturated fat
Initials ___________
How do saturated and unsaturated fats differ?
What are the functions of lipids in your body (see text Pgs. 315)?
c. Carbohydrates- These are organic compounds made from sugars, starches, and cellulose.
i. Glucose (C6H12O6)- The most important simple sugar used in cells. Notice the main part of
this molecule is a hexagon shape.
Initials ___________
What are the functions of carbohydrates in your body (see text Pgs. 314)?
d. Nucleic acids= large polymers that contain C, H, O, N, and P. Two examples are DNA and RNA.
DNA has all the genetic information of a living thing and is passed on when the living thing
reproduces. DNA is a nucleic acid, which is made of monomers called nucleotides. Color the
nucleotide of DNA below:
Sugar (5 sided)- green
phosphate group (round)- yellow
nitrogen base (6 sided)- blue
What are the functions of nucleic acids in your body (see text Pgs. 317)?
Other nutrients found in your body (Please record the functions, p.318):
1. Water=
2. Salts=
Also…
Vitamins- organic compounds that serve as helper molecules in a variety of chemical reactions in your
body
Minerals- Elements needed by the body such as Ca, Na, Fe, K