Download The Chemistry of Life

Chapter 2
Part 2
II. Chemistry of Life
A. Organic Chemistry
1.
a.
b.
c.
d.
Biosynthesis
Living things putting together
substances
Scientists have been trying to create
life
They’ve made simple proteins
Is this morally acceptable?
http://www.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/05/21/venter.qa/index.html
2. Organic compounds
a. Must have carbon in it
b. Carbon covalently bonds
c. Carbon can form straight and branched
chains, rings, single, double, or triple bonds
d. Provides A LOT of possibilities
e. Functions
1) Structural – help with cell
walls/membrane
2) Enzymatic – enzymes
3) Storage – store energy
f. 4 main groups (Table 2B-1 pg 58)
1) Carbohydrates
2) Lipids
3) Proteins
4) Nucleic acids
3. Carbs and Lipids
1) Carbohydrates
a) Have C, H, O
b) Store energy
c) Monosaccharides
i. Simple sugars
ii. Basic unit of carbs
iii. Glucose – sugar from plants
iv. Ribose and fructose
d) Disaccharides
i. Monosaccharides joined together
ii. Dehydration synthesis – water is given
off
i) Sucrose – table sugar
ii) Lactose – milk sugar
iii. Hydrolysis – disaccharides broken
down by water to make monosaccharide
e) Polysaccharides
i. Large molecule of monosaccharides
ii. Enzymes build or break them down
iii. Starch – energy storage for plants
iv. Glycogen – energy storage for animals
v. Cellulose
i) In plant walls
ii) Humans can’t digest
iii) Why is it important?
vi. Chitin
i) Hard coverings
ii) Insects, lobsters, shrimp, clams,
fingernails
2) Lipids
a) Intro
i. Help with structure
ii. Store extra energy
iii. Can store 2x more energy than
muscle
iv. Semi-soluble
b) Fatty Acids
i. Most abundant
ii. Has hydrophilic/phobic parts
i) Hydrophilic – likes water
ii) Hydrophobic – doesn’t like water
iii. Triglycerides
i) Fats
ii) Stores energy
iii) Has 3 fatty acids
iv) Saturated – single bonds,
unhealthy, solid at room temp
v) Unsaturated – double bonds,
liquid
iv. Phospholipids
i) Two fatty acid molecules
ii) Makes cell membranes
4. Proteins and Nucleic Acids
a. Proteins
1) Make a person unique
2) Needed for every function
3) C, H, O, N, plus others
4) Amino acids
a) Building blocks
b) Organisms use 20 different a.a.
c) We can make 12
d) Order of a.a. = certain protein
e) Held together by peptide bonds
f) Forms a polypeptide chain
g) A.a. fold into a 3D shape
h) If shape is broken = might not
function
b. Nucleic Acids
1) Make DNA and RNA
2) Blue print for organisms
B. Enzymes
Catalyst – lowers activation energy for
reaction to occur
2. Enzyme – biological catalyst
a. All enzymes are catalysts, but not all
catalysts are enzymes
b. Most are proteins
c. Speed up reaction or reduce activation
energy required
1.
d. “Energy coupons” – get services or
products at a reduced cost
e. Disruption of homeostasis prevents
enzymes from functioning (fever,
hypo/hyperthermia)
f. Function best in a small range of conditions
g. Temp and pH changes break H-bonds
h. Shape determines function
i. Lock and Key model
Substrates bind to an
enzyme at certain places
called active sites.
The enzyme brings
substrates together and
weakens their bonds.
The catalyzed reaction forms
a product that is released
from the enzyme.