Biological Molecules

Question 1

what is an element(atom)?

Answer 1

a substance that cannot be further broken down

Question 2

what is a molecule?

Answer 2

a substance that consists of two or more atoms chemically bonded together

Question 3

what makes a compound?

Answer 3

a molecule with more than one type of atom

Question 4

what is the little number in molecular formulas?

Answer 4

subscript

Question 5

what are the main atoms in living organisms?

Answer 5

Carbon (C), hydrogen (H), oxygen (O), and nitrogen (N)

Question 6

how many covalent bonds can carbon form with other atoms?

Answer 6

four

Question 7

what is a polymer?

Answer 7

a large chain-like molecule that is made up of smaller units called monomers.

Question 8

what are three examples of polymers?

Answer 8

proteins [made of amino acids], Nucleic acids (DNA and RNA) [made of nucleotides], and carbohydrates [made of monosaccharides.

Question 9

what do carbohydrates do?

Answer 9

store energy and form structures for living organisms

Question 10

what are polysaccharides?

Answer 10

carbs that are polymers of monosaccharides aka simple sugars.

Question 11

what is glucose?

Answer 11

the monosaccharide which is commonly made by plants during photosynthesis and used by animals during cellular respiration.

Question 12

what are some common polysaccharides and their functions?

Answer 12

Starch [used by plants to store energy], glycogen [used by animals to store energy], cellulose [forms the rigid cell walls of plants], chitin [forms the exoskeleton of many insects

Question 13

what are proteins?

Answer 13

polymers made of amino acid monomers

Question 14

what is a polypeptide?

Answer 14

a chain of amino acids

Question 15

what do proteins do?

Answer 15

help cells keep their shape, makeup muscle tissues allowing for movement, transport other molecules in and out of cells, act as chemical messengers between cells, are enzymes that make chemical reactions happen, regulate which genes get used, etc.

Question 16

what is DNA?

Answer 16

double-stranded polynucleotide in the shape of a double helix. the order of nucleotides in an organisms DNA determines the order of amino acids in the organisms proteins

Question 17

what is RNA?

Answer 17

single-stranded polynucleotide acts as a messengers between DNA and ribosomes

Question 18

what do lipids do

Answer 18

store energy as well as form cell membranes. lipids contain long molecules called fatty acids

Question 19

what are phospholipids?

Answer 19

molecules that make up the majority of organisms’ cell membranes the “heads” are hydrophilic and the “tails” are hydrophobic