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The Structure and Function of Large Biological Molecules Chapter 5 -…
The Structure and Function of Large Biological Molecules Chapter 5
macromolecules
Large carbohydrates, proteins, and nucleic acids, also known
polymer
long molecule consisting of many similar or identical building blocks linked by covalent bonds, much as a train consists of a chain of boxcars
monomers
The repeating units that serve as the building blocks of a polymer
amino acids
An organic molecule possessing both a carboxyl and an amino group. Amino acids serve as the monomers of polypeptides.
enzymes
A macromolecule serving as a catalyst, a chemical agent that increases the rate of a reaction without being consumed by the reaction. Most enzymes are proteins.
condensation reaction
a reaction in which two molecules are covalently bonded to each other with the loss of a small molecule
dehydration reaction
A chemical reaction in which two molecules become covalently bonded to each other with the removal of a water molecule.
hydrolysis
A chemical reaction that breaks bonds between two molecules by the addition of water; functions in disassembly of polymers to monomers.
nucleic acids
A polymer (polynucleotide) consisting of many nucleotide monomers; serves as a blueprint for proteins and, through the actions of proteins, for all cellular activities. The two types are DNA and RNA.
carbohydrates
A sugar (monosaccharide) or one of its dimers (disaccharides) or polymers (polysaccharides).
Monosaccharide
The simplest carbohydrate, active alone or serving as a monomer for disaccharides and polysaccharides. Also called simple sugars, monosaccharides have molecular formulas that are generally some multiple of C-H-subscript-2-O.
disaccharide
A double sugar, consisting of two monosaccharides joined by a glycosidic linkage formed by a dehydration reaction.
glycosidic linkage
A covalent bond formed between two monosaccharides by a dehydration reaction.
Polysaccharides
A polymer of many monosaccharides, formed by dehydration reactions.
starch
A storage polysaccharide in plants, consisting entirely of glucose monomers joined by glycosidic linkages.
glycogen
An extensively branched glucose storage polysaccharide found in the liver and muscle of animals; the animal equivalent of starch.
cellulose
A structural polysaccharide of plant cell walls, consisting of glucose monomers joined by beta glycosidic linkages.
lipids
Any of a group of large biological molecules, including fats, phospholipids, and steroids, that mix poorly, if at all, with water.
fat
A lipid consisting of three fatty acids linked to one glycerol molecule; also called a triacylglycerol or triglyceride.
fatty acid
A carboxylic acid with a long carbon chain. Fatty acids vary in length and in the number and location of double bonds; three fatty acids linked to a glycerol molecule form a fat molecule, also called triacylglycerol or triglyceride.
saturated fatty acid
A fatty acid in which all carbons in the hydrocarbon tail are connected by single bonds, thus maximizing the number of hydrogen atoms that are attached to the carbon skeleton
unsaturated fatty acid
A fatty acid that has one or more double bonds between carbons in the hydrocarbon tail. Such bonding reduces the number of hydrogen atoms attached to the carbon skeleton.
trans fats
An unsaturated fat, formed artificially during hydrogenation of oils, containing one or more trans double bonds.
phospholipid
A lipid made up of glycerol joined to two fatty acids and a phosphate group. The hydrocarbon chains of the fatty acids act as nonpolar, hydrophobic tails, while the rest of the molecule acts as a polar, hydrophilic head. Phospholipids form bilayers that function as biological membranes.
steroid
A type of lipid characterized by a carbon skeleton consisting of four fused rings with various chemical groups attached.
cholesterol
) A steroid that forms an essential component of animal cell membranes and acts as a precursor molecule for the synthesis of other biologically important steroids, such as many hormones.
proteins
catalysts
A chemical agent that selectively increases the rate of a reaction without being consumed by the reaction.
polypeptide
A polymer of many amino acids linked together by peptide bond
A biologically functional molecule consisting of one or more polypeptides folded and coiled into a specific three-dimensional structure.