©FYNDLAY EXAM SOLUTIONS 2024/2025
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BIOC 3021 Exam 1 Questions And Answers
(Guaranteed A+)
What are the major elements in living organisms? - answer✔C, H, O, N
What are the minor elements in living organisms? - answer✔P, Na, K, Ca, Mg, S, Cl
What are trace elements in living organisms? - answer✔Fe, Zn, Cu
What are the 4 types of chemical bonds? - answer✔1. Covalent
2. Ionic
3. Hydrogen Bonds
4. Weak Non-Polar Interactions
- van der Waals
- hydrophobic interactions
What are the 5 unique properties of water? - answer✔1. Cohesiveness/adhesiveness
2. High heat capacity
3. High heat of vaporization
4. Expansion upon freezing
5. Versatility as a solvent
What is a Bronsted Acid?
What is an Bronsted Base? - answer✔Acid = proton donor
Base = proton acceptor
How do you calculate pH? - answer✔-log[H3O+]
What is the Henderson-Hasselbalch Equation? - answer✔pH = pKa + log[A-]/[HA]
How do you calculate the buffer range of a solution? - answer✔pKa +/- 1
1|Page
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What is the carbonic acid/bicarbonate buffer system? What are its benefits? - answer✔CO2 +
H2O <-> H2CO3 <-> HCO3- + H+
pKa = 6.1, but CO2 can be removed or retained by respiration which can shift equilibrium.
Oxidation Levels of Carbon - answer✔Reduced -> Oxidized
Alkane, Alcohol, Aldehyde, Ketone, Carboxylic Acid, Carbon Dioxide
Catabolism - answer✔releases energy by oxidizing carbon atoms by moving them to a higher
oxidation state
Anabolism - answer✔uses energy to reduce carbon atoms by moving them to a lower oxidation
state
Reduced carbon - answer✔contains energy that the cell can use. because it is fully reduced, it
can be oxidized by using oxygen as the oxidizing agent and thus release the energy
Oxidized carbon - answer✔has no energy that the cell can capture, only plants can extract
energy and convert it to food source (photosynthesis)
Stereoisomers - answer✔D (R in organic chemistry) and L (S in organic chemistry)
L is the preferred form in nature
Non-Polar Amino Acids - answer✔Alanine (Ala)
Valine (Val)
Leucine (Leu)
IsoLuecine (Ile)
Methionine (Met)
Proline (Pro)
Phenylalanine (Phe)
Tryptophan (Trp)
What is the pKa of Cysteine? - answer✔8.3
What is the pKa of Aspartic Acid? - answer✔4.1
What is the pKa of Glutamic Acid? - answer✔4.1
2|Page
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ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
What is the pKa of Tyrosine? - answer✔10.9
What is the pKa of Histidine? - answer✔6.0
What is the pKa of Lysine? - answer✔10.8
What is the pKa of Arginine? - answer✔12.5
What amino acid can form Disulfide bonds? - answer✔Cysteine
What is the charge of an amino acid at...
1. pH 7
2. pH 1
3. pH 11 - answer✔1. 0 (Zwitter ion)
2. +1
3. -1
What is an essential amino acid? - answer✔It is an amino acid that cannot by synthesized by
the organism and therefore is needed to be obtained through the diet.
How does a peptide bond form? - answer✔Through a condensation reaction which requires
energy, enzymes, activated precursors + catalysis
Planar Peptide Bonds - answer✔Because of double bond character between C and O and C and
N in a peptide, the alpha carbon (one with R group) can swivel.
(Nth)peptide - answer✔20^n unique sequences
Protein structure levels. - answer✔Primary, Secondary, Tertiary, Quaternary
Primary structure - answer✔Core of primary structure is 3 atom repeating unit (amino nitrogen,
carbonyl carbon, alpha carbon)
Secondary structure - answer✔alpha and beta sheet formation
Tertiary structure - answer✔3 dimensional form of a single polypeptide chain
Quaternary structure - answer✔deals with interaction of two or more polypeptide chains to
form an aggregate protein
How to cleave (by reduce) a disulfide? - answer✔Use Beta mercaptoethanol or dithiothreitol.
Stabilize with iodoacetate
3|Page
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
BIOC 3021 Exam 1 Questions And Answers
(Guaranteed A+)
What are the major elements in living organisms? - answer✔C, H, O, N
What are the minor elements in living organisms? - answer✔P, Na, K, Ca, Mg, S, Cl
What are trace elements in living organisms? - answer✔Fe, Zn, Cu
What are the 4 types of chemical bonds? - answer✔1. Covalent
2. Ionic
3. Hydrogen Bonds
4. Weak Non-Polar Interactions
- van der Waals
- hydrophobic interactions
What are the 5 unique properties of water? - answer✔1. Cohesiveness/adhesiveness
2. High heat capacity
3. High heat of vaporization
4. Expansion upon freezing
5. Versatility as a solvent
What is a Bronsted Acid?
What is an Bronsted Base? - answer✔Acid = proton donor
Base = proton acceptor
How do you calculate pH? - answer✔-log[H3O+]
What is the Henderson-Hasselbalch Equation? - answer✔pH = pKa + log[A-]/[HA]
How do you calculate the buffer range of a solution? - answer✔pKa +/- 1
1|Page
, ©FYNDLAY EXAM SOLUTIONS 2024/2025
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
What is the carbonic acid/bicarbonate buffer system? What are its benefits? - answer✔CO2 +
H2O <-> H2CO3 <-> HCO3- + H+
pKa = 6.1, but CO2 can be removed or retained by respiration which can shift equilibrium.
Oxidation Levels of Carbon - answer✔Reduced -> Oxidized
Alkane, Alcohol, Aldehyde, Ketone, Carboxylic Acid, Carbon Dioxide
Catabolism - answer✔releases energy by oxidizing carbon atoms by moving them to a higher
oxidation state
Anabolism - answer✔uses energy to reduce carbon atoms by moving them to a lower oxidation
state
Reduced carbon - answer✔contains energy that the cell can use. because it is fully reduced, it
can be oxidized by using oxygen as the oxidizing agent and thus release the energy
Oxidized carbon - answer✔has no energy that the cell can capture, only plants can extract
energy and convert it to food source (photosynthesis)
Stereoisomers - answer✔D (R in organic chemistry) and L (S in organic chemistry)
L is the preferred form in nature
Non-Polar Amino Acids - answer✔Alanine (Ala)
Valine (Val)
Leucine (Leu)
IsoLuecine (Ile)
Methionine (Met)
Proline (Pro)
Phenylalanine (Phe)
Tryptophan (Trp)
What is the pKa of Cysteine? - answer✔8.3
What is the pKa of Aspartic Acid? - answer✔4.1
What is the pKa of Glutamic Acid? - answer✔4.1
2|Page
, ©FYNDLAY EXAM SOLUTIONS 2024/2025
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
What is the pKa of Tyrosine? - answer✔10.9
What is the pKa of Histidine? - answer✔6.0
What is the pKa of Lysine? - answer✔10.8
What is the pKa of Arginine? - answer✔12.5
What amino acid can form Disulfide bonds? - answer✔Cysteine
What is the charge of an amino acid at...
1. pH 7
2. pH 1
3. pH 11 - answer✔1. 0 (Zwitter ion)
2. +1
3. -1
What is an essential amino acid? - answer✔It is an amino acid that cannot by synthesized by
the organism and therefore is needed to be obtained through the diet.
How does a peptide bond form? - answer✔Through a condensation reaction which requires
energy, enzymes, activated precursors + catalysis
Planar Peptide Bonds - answer✔Because of double bond character between C and O and C and
N in a peptide, the alpha carbon (one with R group) can swivel.
(Nth)peptide - answer✔20^n unique sequences
Protein structure levels. - answer✔Primary, Secondary, Tertiary, Quaternary
Primary structure - answer✔Core of primary structure is 3 atom repeating unit (amino nitrogen,
carbonyl carbon, alpha carbon)
Secondary structure - answer✔alpha and beta sheet formation
Tertiary structure - answer✔3 dimensional form of a single polypeptide chain
Quaternary structure - answer✔deals with interaction of two or more polypeptide chains to
form an aggregate protein
How to cleave (by reduce) a disulfide? - answer✔Use Beta mercaptoethanol or dithiothreitol.
Stabilize with iodoacetate
3|Page
