Exam Questions and CORRECT Answers
what are the four main classes of biological molecules - CORRECT ANSWER -
carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, nucleic acids
what is the smallest unit of life - CORRECT ANSWER - a cell
what feature is required for a molecule to be considered a biological molecule - CORRECT
ANSWER - a carbon backbone
what is a polymer - CORRECT ANSWER - a molecule built by bonding many monomers
together
what is a monomer - CORRECT ANSWER - the smallest single molecule that still has the
properties of a specific class
what is dehydration synthesis - CORRECT ANSWER - the formation of large molecules
by the removal of water
how are polymers formed - CORRECT ANSWER - through dehydration synthesis,
monomers are joined to form polymers
what is hydrolysis - CORRECT ANSWER - the breakdown of large molecules by the
addition of water
how are monomers formed - CORRECT ANSWER - through hydrolysis, polymers are
broken down into monomers
,what's a carbohydrate - CORRECT ANSWER - molecules with a 1:2:1 ratio of carbon,
hydrogen and oxygen, the C-H covalent bonds hold much energy
what is a monosaccharide - CORRECT ANSWER - the simplest carbohydrate
what are some monosaccharide examples - CORRECT ANSWER - glyceraldehyde,
ribose, deoxyribose, glucose, fructose, galactose
what are disaccharides - CORRECT ANSWER - a carbohydrate, two monosaccharides
linked together by dehydration synthesis, used for sugar transport or energy storage
example of a disaccharide - CORRECT ANSWER - sucrose
what is a polysaccharide - CORRECT ANSWER - a carbohydrate, long chains of
monosaccharides linked together through dehydration synthesis, are used for energy storage and
structural support
examples of polysaccharides - CORRECT ANSWER - starch, glycogen, cellulose, chitin
what's a nucleotide - CORRECT ANSWER - a molecule made of a nitrogenous base, a 5-
carbon sugar, and a phosphate group
what's a monomer example of a nucleic acid - CORRECT ANSWER - ATP, which is the
primary energy carrier of the cell, has multiple phosphate groups which makes it have lots of
energy to release
what's a polymer example of nucleic acids - CORRECT ANSWER - DNA, two
polynucleotide strands connected by hydrogen bonds, they encode information for amino acid
sequence of proteins
, what's a protein - CORRECT ANSWER - a polymer, composed of long, unbranched
chains of amino acids
what's an amino acid - CORRECT ANSWER - the basic unit of a protein, a monomer. has
a central carbon atom, an amino group (NH2), a single hydrogen, and an R group
what's a dipeptide/dimer - CORRECT ANSWER - two amino acids joined by dehydration
synthesis
what are the functions of a protein - CORRECT ANSWER - enzyme catalysis (helping
with reactions in the cell), defense (identify pathogens and break them down), transport, support,
motion, regulation and storage
what is a lipid - CORRECT ANSWER - a group of molecules that are hydrophobic or
insoluble in water since they have a high proportion of non polar hydrocarbon bonds
lipid examples - CORRECT ANSWER - fats, oils, waxes, terpenes, steroids
what are long tail lipids - CORRECT ANSWER - fatty acid tails, phospholipids,
triglycerides
what are multiple ring lipids - CORRECT ANSWER - cholesterol and its derivatives
what are fatty acid tails - CORRECT ANSWER - long chains of nonpolar hydrocarbons
what is saturated - CORRECT ANSWER - no double bonds between atoms, chains are
straight
what is unsaturated - CORRECT ANSWER - has one or more double bonds, chains are
kinked