UNIT 1 BIOCHEMISTRY UA

What is Biology?  Bio = lifeology = the science of  Biology = the science of life!

What is “life” made of?  All living things need 6 essential elements:  CHNOPS Carbon Hydrogen Nitrogen Oxygen Phosphorous Sulfur

Life is organic  All life is organic  (contains BOTH Carbon and Hydrogen) NaCl

Biotic vs. abiotic  Abiotic: non-living  Soil  Rocks  Sunlight  Water  Biotic: living  Animals  Plants  Bacteria  Fungi  Protists

Biological molecules (macromolecules) Carbohydrate Lipid Nucleic acid Protein

Macromolecule structure  All macromolecules are BIG!  Made of small pieces or subunits called monomers.  Many put together = polymer. monomer

Carbohydrates – sugars!  Composed of: CHO in a 1:2:1 ratio  Monomer: monosaccharide (mono means one)  2 = disaccharide  3 or more = polysaccharide  Function: Immediate energy, cell structure  Examples: glucose, sucrose, glycogen, starch, cellulose.  How to identify: Looks like a ring

Carbohydrates – sugars! 20 cellulose fibers in plant cell wall H bond monosaccharide disaccharide polysaccharide

Lipids – fats!  Composed of: CHO  Monomer: glycerol and three fatty acids  Function: Long term energy storage  Examples: fats, oils, waxes, steroids  How to identify: long chains of carbon and hydrogen (can have rings too). CH 3 Cholesterol (a steroid) CH 3 H3CH3C HO

Lipids – fats!  Saturated fats: Come from animals.  No double bonds between carbons.  Difficult to break down.  Unsaturated fats: Come from plants.  Double bonds between carbons.  Easier to break down.  Trans fatty acids have been artificially hydrogenated to make them more solid.

Phospholipids Plasma membrane of a cell inside of cell outside of cell R P O O O–O– phosphate group fatty acids HCH H CH O OC HCH HC O HCH H HC HCH H Phospholipid structure OC polar head glycerol nonpolar tails Phospholipids make up the cell membrane. Polar (charged) head likes water (hydrophilic). Non-polar (uncharged) tail hates water (hydrophobic)

Nucleic Acids  Composed of: CHONP  Monomer: nucleotide  Function: store and pass genetic information  Examples: DNA and RNA  How to identify: A nucleotide has 3 parts!

Proteins  Composed of: CHON  Monomer: amino acid  R-group makes them unique  Function: make cell parts and carry out chemical reactions  Examples: enzymes, hemoglobin, melanin, keratin, insulin  How to identify: each amino acid has a N!

Proteins  Proteins are chains of amino acids that fold up into a specific shape.  Shape determines function! Amino acids

Enzymes (special proteins)  Enzymes make reactions go faster!  Catalyst – substance that speeds up a reaction. Lower activation energy – energy required to cause a reaction.

Enzymes (special proteins)  Enzymes can synthesize or breakdown molecules.  Important terms: substrate, product, enzyme-substrate complex, active site substrate enzyme Enzyme-substrate complex active site products

Enzymes (special proteins)  Example: Catalase in liver.  Catalase breaks down harmful hydrogen peroxide into water and oxygen! Hydrogen peroxide (H 2 O 2 ) Catalase Enzyme-substrate complex active site H 2 O and O 2

Enzymes (special proteins)  Characteristics of enzymes:  Specific substrate  Specific temperature If they are heated too much they unfold = denature!  Specific pH  Specific shape  Reusable

pH  Water can separate to make ions. Acid Base Increasing [H + ] Increasing [OH – ] hydrochloric acid (HCI) stomach acid lemon juice Coca-Cola, beer, vinegar tomatoes black coffee urine pure water, tears seawater baking soda, stomach antacids Great Salt Lake household ammonia bicarbonate of soda oven cleaner sodium hydroxide (NaOH) normal rainwater saliva human blood milk of magnesia [H + ] [OH – ] neutral pH [H + ] = [OH – ] Base Acid Hydrogen ion Hydroxide ionWater Buffer: Keeps pH stable (we have a buffer in our blood).