organic compounds & Macromolecules Flashcards
what are the 4 main types of organic compunds?
Carbohydrates, lipids, proteins and nucleic acids.
how do carbohydrates, lipids and proteins break down in our body?/ What do they get transformed into?
Carbohydrates break down into sugar. Lipids break down into fatty acids and protiens break down into amino acids.
What kind of organic compound is DNA/RNA made of?
Nucleic acid
What are 3 purposes of carbohydrates, lipids and proteins?
- They are sources of energy
- They are the building blocks of cells and
give structural support. - They have cell specific functions.
What is the purpose of nucleic acid?
They are the building blocks of genetic material i.e DNA/RNA.
Why is Carbon the element of life?/Why are carbon based molecules called as organic compunds?
Carbon chains are the backbone for most of the molecules in living organisms.
What does an organic compound’s properties depend on?
An organic compound’s properties depend on the size and shape of its carbon backbone and atoms attached to that skeleton.
What are polar functional groups, give two charcteristics of them.
Polar functional groups are those which have unequal distribution of charges.
( Hydroxyl, carbonyl, carboxyl, amino group and phospate group)
- Water soluble
- hydrophilic
What are non polar functional groups , give two characteristics.
Non polar functional groups are those that have equal distribution of electrons. (methyl)
- Water insoluble
- Hydrophobic
- Methyl is known for being highly unreactive but it affects function by altering the molecular shape.
Compare carbonyl and hydroxyl.
Hydroxyl
1. They transform hydrocarbons to alcohol.
2. Water soluble and polar
3. They are part of most of the macromolecules like sugars, amino acids, fatty acids and DNA.
Carbonyl
1. They can be found at the end or middle of carbon skeleton.
2. Water soluble and polar
3. They make up some simple sugars.
Compare Carboxyl and Amino group.
Carboxyl
1. Contains carbonyl and hydroxyl
2. Can act acidic by donating a H+ ion and alter the ph of a solution
3. One of the main components of amino acids.
Amino group
1. Consists of a nitrogen bonded to 2 hydrogens
2. Can act acidic by donating H+ ion and alter the ph of the solution.
3. One of the main components of amino acids
What are the characteristics of phosphate groups?
- Consist of phophorus atom bonded to 4 oxygen atoms , that is ionized meaning there is a lot of negative charge.
- Adenosine triphosphate is the energy compund in cellular processes.
- Phosphate group are major components in nucleic acids (DNA)
What are the characteristics of Methyl group?
- They are non polar and hydrophobic
- They are not technically functional groups but are an importamt structural chemical group.
What does Methylation do to DNA?
Methylation is simply the addition of a methyl group. When a compound is methylated it changes the structure which can indirectly change cell functions.
DNA methylation affects gene expression.
Explain the history of methylation.
Methylated cytosine (5mC) was detected in bacteria before the official discovery of DNA structures. Since then, there’s been a lot of work to figure out if and what happens functionally when DNA is methylated
One of the prevailing theories is that methylation affects gene transcription, usually to repress it.
