BSC 2010c Chapter 5 Notes

Chapter 5- The Structure and Function of Large Biological
Molecules:


 5.1 Macromolecules are polymers, built from monomers:
 Polymer: a long molecule consisting of many similar or
identical monomers linked together by covalent bonds
 Carbohydrates
 Proteins
 Nucleic acids
 Monomer: subunit the serves as the building block of a
polymer
 Macromolecule: large complex molecules
 Carbohydrates
 Lipids
 Protein
 Nucleic acid
 The Synthesis and Breakdown of Polymers:
o Enzyme: macromolecule that serves as a catalyst
o Dehydration synthesis: chemical reaction in which two
molecules become covalently bonded to each other with
the removal of a water molecule
o Hydrolysis: chemical reaction that breaks bonds
between two molecules by the addition of water

, The Diversity of Polymers:
o A cell has thousands of different macromolecules
o Macromolecules vary among cells of an organisms

, o A huge variety of polymers can be built from a small set
of monomers
 5.2 Carbohydrates serve as fuel and building material:
 Carbohydrates: a sugar (monosaccharide) or one of its
dimers ( disaccharide) or polymer ( polysaccharides)
o The simplest carbohydrates are monosaccharides, or
simple sugars
o Carbohydrate macromolecules are polysaccharides,
polymers composed of many sugar buikding blocks
 Sugars :
 Monosaccharides: have molecular formulas that are usually
multiples of CH2O
o Serve as a major fuel for cells, and as raw material for
building molecules
o Drawn as linear skeletons, in aqueous solutions many
sugars form rings
o Glucose ( C6H12O6) is the most common
monosaccharide
o Classified by:
 The location of the carbonyl group (aldose or
ketose)
 The number of skeletons in the carbon skeleton
 Disaccharide: formed when a dehydration reaction joins two
monosaccharides
 Glycosidic linkage: covalent bond formed between two
monosaccharides by dehydration synthesis