BIOC 221 - Midterm #1 Flashcards
(170 cards)
What constitutes life?
self-sustaining chemical system capable of darwinian evolution
- metabolism
- self-replication
- adaptation
autotrophs
use CO2 from environment as carbon source
often photosynthetic
heterotrophs
obtain carbon from complex molecules (ex.glucose) not from environment
(obtain c by degrading nutrients from autotrophs)
metabolism
entire set of enzyme catalyzed transformations of organic molecules in living cells;
the sum of anabolism and catabolism
Anabolism
phase of intermediary metabolism concerned with the energy-requiring biosynthesis of cell components from smaller precursors.
Catabolism
the phase of intermediary metabolism concerned with the energy-yielding degradation of nutrient molecules.
(a) Energy containing nutrients –(catabolism)–> (b) Energy-depleted end products
a) carbohydrates, fats, proteins
b) CO2, H2O, NH3
energy releases yields high energy compounds (ATP, NADH, NADPH, FADH2)
(a) Precursor molecules –(anabolism)–> (b) Cell macromolecules
a) proteins, polysachs, lipids, nucleic acids
b) amino acids, sugars, fatty acids, nitrogenous bases
uses high energy compounds
(2) types of metabolic pathways
1) branched
2) linear
(3) non-linear types of metabolic pathways
1) convergent (catabolic)
2) cyclic
3) divergent (anabolic)
In each Metabolic Pathway, a principal ____ is modified by a series of chemical ___ catalyzed by___.
metabolite
reactions
enzymes
The series of reactions that modify a principal metabolite often involve…
cofactors
The end product of a metabolic pathway can have (3) fates
a) used immediately
b) used to initiate another pathway
c) stored by the cell
Primary (Basic) Metabolism:
Metabolic processes that are necessary for the maintenance of life
Primary metabolites:
Intermediates or products of primary metabolism such as amino acids, sugars, lipids, nucleotides, organic acids, polyols, and vitamins
Secondary (specialized) Metabolism:
pathways that are not absolutely required for the survival of the organism. Highly evolvable and pliable.
- derived from primary metabolites
•Unlike primary metabolites, absence of secondary metabolites does not result in ___ ___ , but rather in long-term impairment of the organism’s survivability, reproduction, or aesthetics, or perhaps in no significant change at all.
immediate death
Types of Chemical Transformation in Cells
(4-1) Cleavage/formation of C-C bond
(4-2) Internal rearrangements, isomerizations, and eliminations (including condensation reactions)
(4-3) Group transfers (phosphoryl, methyl, formyl …)
(4-4) Free radical reactions
(4-5) Oxidation-reductions (co-factors – NADH, NADPH, FADH2 - store reducing power)
(4-1) Cleavage/formation of C-C bond
1) homolytic cleavage
2) heterolyic cleavage
(4-1) Nucleophilic Carbon-Carbon bond formation reactions
1) aldol reaction
2) claisen condensation
1) aldol reaction
A nucleophilic carbonyl addition reaction, in which the electrophile is the carbonyl carbon of an aldehyde or ketone
2) claisen condensation
A nucleophilic enolate can also attack the carbonyl carbon of a carboxylic acid derivative in a nucleophilic acyl substitution reaction.
Free energy
portion of total energy of a system that is released
2nd law of thermodynamics:
In all natural processes, the entropy of universe always increases