Biochemistry Test Review

Organic Basics

1. Why does carbon rarely form ionic compounds?
2. When a single carbon atom bonds other atoms, what determines the shape of the molecule?
3. Carbon can form molecules shaped like _______, _________ and ________.
4. List four of the six functional groups we looked at.
5. Draw a structure diagram of those four functional groups.
6. Which functional group contains sulfur?
7. Which functional group contains nitrogen?
8. Which functional group contains phosphorus?

Carbohydrates

1. What is the name of the covalent-bonding process by which monosaccharides become polysaccharides?
2. A pentose sugar has ___ carbons.
3. How can three sugars (glucose, fructose, galactose) with the same chemical formula (C₆H₁₂O₆) behave so very differently in chemical reactions and in cells?
4. An example of a plant storage polysaccharide is _________________
5. An example of a plant structural polysaccharide is _________________
6. An example of a animal storage polysaccharide is _________________
7. An example of a animal structural polysaccharide is _________________
8. Why might cooking a potato make the polysaccharides it contains easier to digest?

Lipids

1. Why are lipids generally repelled by water molecules?
2. What is the name of the covalent-bonding process by which fat is formed?
3. Glycerol, 2 fatty acids and a phosphate group combine to form a ____________ .
4. When a glycerol and 3 fatty acids combine to form a ____________ there are also ___ molecules of water formed.
5. Four linked carbon rings form a lipid group called ____________.
6. An example of a saturated fat is __________.
7. An example of an unsaturated fat is __________.
8. An example of a steroid is __________.
9. A fatty acid with one or more double bonds means that it is not ___________ with hydrogen atoms.
10. At room temperature a saturated fat is most likely ________ (solid or liquid).
11. Phospholipid are unusual lipids as they have a polar end that _______________ water.
12. Why do phospholipids form bilayers in an aqueous solution?

Proteins

1. What is the name of the covalent-bonding process by which proteins are formed?
2. List the four bond partners of an amino acid alpha carbon atom.
3. How many common amino acids are there?
4. What distinguishes these amino acids from one another?
5. Glucose is to starch as amino acids are to _______________.
6. What is the element structure of a protein backbone? List the pattern of elements.
7. The sequence of a protein's amino acids determines its _____________.
8. How a protein functions is determined by its ____________.
9. List the four atomic/molecular interactions that help determine a protein's structure.
10. An example of a storage protein is __________.
11. An example of an structural protein is __________.
12. An example of a protein involved with movement is __________.

Nucleic acids

1. List the three components of a nucleotide.
2. The two types of nucleic acids are_________ and _________ (spell them out).
3. List the five nitrogenous bases.
4. What is the main difference between a pyrimidine and a purine?
5. When forming DNA, a pyrimidine always connects to a _________.
6. List two differences between DNA and RNA.