chemistry of life
Niya Adams and Todd Paige
Water
-Water bonds to itself: This is called cohesion, where substances of the same kind are attracted to each other (water sticks to water, like drops of water on a plant).
-Water bonds to other substances: Water can also bond to substances other than itself; this is called adhesion, the attraction between different substances. An example is how water drops stick to a window.
-Polarity: Water is polar, which means that its water molecules have an uneven distribution of charge. Some parts of the molecules are negatively charged, while another is positively charged. Because it has an imbalance of charges, it is attracted to ions (which are charged molecules) and other polar molecules (uneven + uneven = even).
-pH of water: "The pH of pure water is neutral, or 7. When an acid (pH less than 7) dissolves in pure water, hydrogen ions are formed. When a base (pH more than 7) dissolves in pure water, hydroxide ions are formed". (cited from water properties)
-Density of water: Water is less dense when it is frozen. For example this is why ice floats.
-Surface tension: Water molecules go to together ( link up) at the surface of water to form covalent bonds. This prevents the surface of water from breaking easily. "You can test this by floating a paper clip on water. Normally, the paper clip should sink because its density is higher than that of water; however surface tension keeps it up."(water properties)
-Non-polar substances do not dissolve well in water: Like said, water is polar. Polar does not mix with non-polar. For example, oil is nonpolar. When you put oil in water, you can see it forms circles or little bubbles in the water. This is because when the oil goes into water, the water molecules are more attracted to each other than to the oil molecules.WATER IS MORE DENSE THAN OIL IS which makes the oil go up to the top So, the oil molecules are shoved together.
Marcomolecule
Monosaccharides- Its function is to be a basic source of energy. Examples are glucose and fructose (fruit and sugar).
Disaccharides- Its function is to also be a basic source of energy. Examples are sucrose (table sugar).
Oligosaccharides- The function for this is to be a cellular sign post. An example is fructo-oligosaccharides
Carbohydrates
Proteins
There are many different types of proteins. Here are some examples of some proteins. There are keratin, elastin, collagen, enzymes, hemoglobin, and many more.
Lipids
Nucleic Acids
Nucleic acids are biological molecules found in a life. DNA and RNA are two types of nucleic acids. The main function of nucleic acids is to store and transmit genetic material.
Enzymes
Enzymes are a substance produced by a living organism that acts as a catalyst to bring about a specific biochemical reaction.An enzyme-substrate complex forms when the active site binds with the substrate. The shape of the it enzyme must match the shape of the substrate. Enzymes are therefore very specific; they will only function correctly if the shape of the substrate matches the active site. The temperature and the oh level affect it because if the temp is too high it melts the enzymes