“THE CHEMISTRY OF LIFE” “THE CHEMISTRY OF CARBON” Biochemistry

What is a Macromolecule? A VERY LARGE MOLECULE, SUCH AS A POLYMER OR PROTEIN, CONSISTING OF MANY SMALLER STRUCTURAL UNITS LINKED TOGETHER. ALSO CALLED SUPERMOLECULE.

ALL BIOLOGICAL MACRO-MOLECULE ARE MADE UP OF A SMALL NUMBER OF ELEMENTS: CARBON, HYDROGEN, OXYGEN, NITROGEN, PHOSPHORUS AND SULFUR Biological Macromolecule

All molecules in the body are made up of the following elements… CHOPSN= Carbon (bonds with all these other elements Hydrogen Oxygen Phosphorous Sulfur Nitrogen

Monomer “mono”= one A single unit in a molecule A Monomer is a molecule that may bind chemically to other molecules to form a polymer Example of a monomer would be glucose, a simple sugar found in plants. This product bonds to form polymers such as starch and cellulose which 77% of the plant is made of. C 6 H 12 O 6 DON’T FORGET THIS FORMULA YOU WILL SEE IT AGAIN

Polymer Large molecule made up of multiple monomers Polymers range from familiar synthetic plastics such as polystyrene to natural biopolymers such as DNA and proteins that are fundamental to biological structure and function. Polymers, both natural and synthetic, are created via polymerization of many small molecules, known as monomers.

Analogy of Polymers EXAMPLE of POLYMER MONOMER A TRAIN? A NECKLACE? If the train is the whole polymer, what would be the small groups that make up the train? If the necklace is the polymer, what are the monomers that make up the necklace?

Polymerization The process of putting monomers together to form a polymer Polymerization is a process of reacting monomer molecules together in a chemical reaction to form polymer chains or three-dimensional networks

Video Polymerization in which large compounds are built by joining smaller ones together. This can also be done synthetically with plastics. player_embedded&v=QnWA0DDxJBo

THE BIG FOUR!!!! 3 out of the 4 types of biochemical macromolecules can be found on food nutrition labels… Carbohydrates Proteins Lipids Nucleic Acid

When studying these biochemical molecules, we are interested in finding out….. what they do for living things. what they generally look like. what their monomers are. and how they may help the body gain energy to sustain life.

Carbohydrates Elements: C,H,O in 1:2:1 ratio Generally in the shape of a hexagon or pentagon Monomer: Monosaccharide (simple sugars - glucose) Polymers: Disaccharide – 2 monosaccharides (complex sugars - sucrose) Polysaccharide – many monosaccharides (starch, cellulose) Names end in –ose Ose= sugar Sacchar = sugar

Monosaccharides Use: quick energy Foods: fruits (Fructose), candy (glucose), milk (Galactose) Produced: process of photosynthesis in the organelle chloroplast Your brain runs on glucose!

Simple sugar foods

Disaccharides Use: quick energy Foods: Table sugar (sucrose) Malt sugar (maltose - forms from breakdown of starches including grains) Milk sugar (lactose – think lactose intolerant) Produced by plants storing products of photosynthesis process carried out in the organelle the chloroplast – think maple syrup

Complex Sugar Foods

Polysaccharides Uses: quick energy, (but more stable to store than glucose) and structure (cell walls of plants made of cellulose) Foods: Potatoes, bread, pasta (starch), Bran Fiber (cellulose indigestible for humans) Produced by liver from excess blood sugar and made by plants into cell walls from glucose made during photosynthesis by the chloroplast

Starchy Foods Carbohydrates are digested in the mouth and small intestine using amylase. Amyl = starch Ase = enzyme (break down)

Proteins Elements: C, H, O, N, S, P Monomer: Amino Acids (20 different) Polymer: Polypeptides that are folded into proteins

Amino Acid Structure There are 20 different amino acids that are essential to the human body.

Proteins Uses: Structure of body tissues - muscles, bones, blood, hair, skin - most of your body Foods: Egg whites, meat, fish, beans Produced by process of protein synthesis in the organelle ribosome (made from recipe in DNA)

High Protein Foods

Folding a protein A – amino acid sequence -1st level B/C – amino acids are twisted or folded – 2nd level D – the twisted chain is folded – 3rd level E – multiple chains are arranged together – 4th level (hemoglobin)

Lipids (oils, fats, waxes) Elements: C,H,O but NOT in 1:2:1 ratio Generally in the shape of a glycerol with one or 2 tails. Monomers: Glycerol and Fatty Acid Chains Polymers: Triglycerides made from1 glycerol plus 3 fatty acid chains

Lipids Uses: Long term energy storage, cell membranes (cholesterol and phospholipids), Foods: olive oil, avocados, butter, lard, beeswax Produced by process of dehydration synthesis in the organelle smooth ER Your body uses it for chemical messengers (steroids), insulation and padding your organs

Constructing a triglyceride

Oils vs. Fats Oils are liquid and fats are solid at room temperature Oils are stored in seeds of plants Fats are stored under skin or around organs of animals Lipids are broken down in the small intestine by lipase and bile produced by the liver. Lip = fat (lipid)

Fatty Foods

Saturated vs. Unsaturated Fats Unsaturated fats have one or more double bonds between carbons so they do not have all the possible hydrogens fference/Saturated_Fats_ vs_Unsaturated_Fats

Nucleic Acids Elements: C,H,O,N,P Monomers: Nucleotides Nucleotides are made of a phosphate group, a sugar (deoxyribose DNA or ribose RNA) and a Nitrogen Base Nucleotides: adenine, thymine, guanine, cytosine, (uracil) Polymers: DNA, RNA

Nucleotide Structure

Nucleic Acids Uses: DNA carries genetic information and directions to make proteins RNA makes proteins and is the structure of the ribosome Produced by the process of DNA replication in the nucleus from existing DNA Nucleic acids are digested in the small intestines by nucleases.

DNA

DNA to a Protein