Yay for… ORGANIC MOLECULES! Glucose: Friend or foe?
Carbon based molecules are basis of life! Why Carbon? Carbon has 4 valence shell electrons
Why is that important? Each of carbon's valence shell electrons can bond with another atom Carbon can even bond with itself Carbon can form rings, chains, and other shapes
Macromolecules MMeans literally “giant molecules” FFormed by polymerization WWhen large molecules are built by joining smaller ones together 44 main types CCarbohydrates- simple and complex LLipids NNucleic acids pproteins
Carbohydrates Have carbon, hydrogen and oxygen atoms In a 1:2:1 ratio Main source of energy for living things Glucose used in respiration to make ATP Examples: Simple sugars: sucrose, fructose, glucose (C 6 H 12 O 6 ) Complex carbohydrates: starches, cellulose, glycogen
Uses of Carbohydrates Storage: glucose forms long chains to be stored as starch (in plants) and glycogen (in animals) for later nutrition Structure: - glucose forms long chains of cellulose found in plant cell walls - glucose also main part of chitin molecule found in insect exoskeletons
Lipids FFats, steroids, phospholipids, waxes UUsed to store energy or build membranes AAll are hydrophobic (don’t like water) GGlycerol head with 1-3 fatty acid tails
More about Lipids: Fats Saturated fats are covered in hydrogen atoms Unsaturated fats have one or more double-bonded carbons, making them kinked Kinked fat molecules cannot pack together and clog arteries as well!
Nucleic acids: DNA and RNA DNA and RNA are made of small units called nucleotides DNA and RNA are called nucleic acids Made mostly of Adenine, Thymine, Guanine, Cytosine, and Uracil molecules
Proteins MMade of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen MMade of small molecules called amino acids TThere are 20 types of amino acids, which link together to make a protein Side Chain Amino Group Carboxyl Group
Function of Proteins Transport of substances Structure of cells Cell and organism movement Defense against foreign invaders Helping chemical reactions occur
All of these macromolecules combine to make you the exquisite person you are today! Can you name all four macromolecules?