Download ZOOMING DOWN THE TREE OF LIFE TO LIFE`S BUILDING BLOCKS

ZOOMING DOWN THE TREE OF LIFE TO
LIFE'S BUILDING BLOCKS
Student Worksheet
All key components of every living cell are made of macromolecules.
These are very large molecules that determine the structural and
functional properties of living cells. There are four different kinds of
macromolecules -- carbohydrates, nucleic acids, proteins and lipids.
They are called "macro" molecules for their very large size relative to
other organic molecules.
Explore the macromolecules in the Tree of Life by clicking on the
squares with pictures, noticing the basic features of the
macromolecules you find. Most macromolecules are polymers -long
chains of similar subunits called monomers. What monomers can you
find for the different kinds of macromolecules?
CARBOHYDRATES
From maple syrup
to sucrose
From tree
trunk to
cellulose
From leaf to
starch
*
PROTEINS
From a monkey to From the
the protein
coccoon of a
hemoglobin
silk worm to
the protein
From human
hair to the
protein
keratin
fibroin
From a bee to
the protein
mellitin
NUCLEIC ACIDS
LIPIDS
From parrot to
From soil
its chromosomal
bacteria to
DNA
bacterial DNA
From an iguana to
phospholipids
Compare the similarities and differences between the chemistry of the
biomolecules.
You have found carbohydrates in maple syrup, in the tree trunk, and in
green leaves. What do they all have in common? What makes them similar
and what makes them different from the other groups of macromolecules in
a living cell?
How are lipids different from the other three kinds of macromolecules?
In how many places in a cell are those molecules distributed? Take a look at
the cell picture. and answer the following questions:
If you needed to collect the nucleic acids of DNA from a cell, where would
you go?
_____________________________________________
Where is the most starch found in the plant cell?
_________________________________________________________
________________
Where do lipids appear primarily in a cell ? What do those places have in
common?
_________________________________________________________
__________________
Because they are the machines of the cell, proteins are found almost
everywhere in the cell. Where are they probably NOT found?
_________________________________________________________
_____________________