1. Biomolecule Chemical Structure
Protein
Carbohydrate
Lipid
Nucleic Acid

2. The Chemistry of Life
Living things, or organisms such as plants and animals, are made of uncountable numbers of molecules. But one thing they all have in common is they contain carbon atoms. Life on earth is based on carbon compounds that we call biomolecules. Biomolecules are macromolecules or “giant molecules.” They are giant because they are polymers made of hundreds or even thousands of smaller molecules, monomers. It would be difficult to study the millions of biomolecules if we didn’t separate them into groups. Four of the major kinds of biomolecules are carbohydrates, lipids, proteins and nucleic acids.

3. Carbohydrates
Carbohydrates are biomolecules made of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen atoms, usually in a ratio of 1:2:1. For example C6H1206 is a carbohydrate called glucose. You will notice that carbohydrates names commonly end in -ose. The two major functions carried out by carbohydrates are that they are used as the main source of energy in organisms, and they are used for structural purposes. If you didn’t already know, carbohydrates are sugar or starch. Simple sugars made of one carbohydrate are called monosaccharides. Complex sugars (starch) made of many carbohydrates are polysaccharides.

4. Lipids
Lipids are a large group of biomolecules that generally are not soluble in water. That means they will not dissolve (mix). Lipids are large biomolecules composed of a glycerol and two or more fatty acid chains made of many carbon and hydrogen atoms. Lipids are commonly fats, oils and waxes. Lipids are used to store energy and are an important part of the cell membrane and other waterproof coverings. Because lipids contain many more carbon to hydrogen bonds, compared to carbohydrates, they contain more energy. But, because it’s difficult for organisms to break all those bonds to release energy they are not used as a main source of energy.

5. Proteins
Proteins are biomolecules that contain carbon, hydrogen, oxygen and nitrogen. Proteins are polymers of molecules called amino acids. There are only 20 different amino acids on earth. But, the structure of the amino acids allow them to be joined together in infinite combinations. Therefore proteins can be made of any number of amino acids to create proteins of infinite sizes and shapes. Proteins are the functional portions of living things and are different in each type of organism. They function to control the rate of chemical reactions, regulate cell processes, form structural components like bone and muscle, and transport substances into or out of cell.

6. Nucleic Acids
Nucleic acids are biomolecules that are made of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen and phosphorus. They are polymers of smaller molecules called nucleotides. Each nucleotide is made of a sugar, a phosphate and a nitrogen molecule called a nitrogen base. Later you will learn how these nitrogen bases are used to assemble the many possible proteins in organisms. Nucleic acids store and transmit hereditary, or genetic, information. This is information passed from one generation of organisms to the next and is used to produce the necessary molecules needed for the new generation to grow and survive. There are two types of nucleic acids ribonucleic acid (RNA) and deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA).

7. Biomolecules Information Chart
Part
Title
Column
Headings
Row Headings
Information
Quality of Work
Attributes
Title is relevant to the information in the chart.
Column headings include: Biomolecule, Function, Structure, and Source.
Row headings include: Protein, Lipid, Carbohydrate and Nucleic Acids.
Biomolecule column includes the name of the biomolecule described.
Function column identifies the major role of that biomolecule within organisms.
Structure column identifies the elements and monomer that make up that biomolecule.
Source column identifies common organic material that are mainly composed of that biomolecule.
Information is simple statements or terms
The written material is easily readable, written clearly and can be understood by anyone.
Points
10 points
60 points (5 each box)