Biology 101

Spring, 2002

 

Study Guide: Exam 1

 

Chapter 1: A View of Life

(About 10 exam questions will come from Chapter 1)

A.  Definition of Life:

1.    Organization:      Atoms (Subatomic Particles ­ Chapter 2)

Molecules (Inorganic (water, salts) vs.

       Organic (contain carbon))

                                    Macromolecules:    Carbohydrates (sugars,starches)

                                                               Proteins

                                                               Lipids

                                                               Nucleic Acids (DNA, RNA)

                                    Cells

                                    Tissues:   Epithelial

                                                  Connective

                                                  Muscle

                                                  Nervous

                                    Organs:    Heart

                                                   Liver

                                                   Kidney

                                                   (many more)

                                    Systems:   Circulatory

                                                    Digestive

                                                    Skeletal

                                                    (moreŠ)

                                    Organism:    5 Kingdoms

Also:

(not on exam)                Species

                                    Population

                                    Community

                                    Ecosystem

                                    Biosphere

 

*The whole is greater than the sum of its parts:  each level of organization has new properties (functions, requirements) not accounted for by summing the parts of the previous levels

 

2.    Acquisition of Materials and Energy

-  Materials: most important is organic nutrients (food)

-  Food provides building blocks for cellular (organic) macromolecules

   and energy (the ability to do work)

ATP: source of energy for chemical reactions in cell

Couple endothermic reaction to exothermic reaction (ATP hydrolysis: ATP Þ ADP + PI)

         Metabolism:  all the chemical reactions in a cell

         *Homeostasis: maintenance of internal conditions

 

3.    Response to stimuli

-       Find energy and nutrients

-       Survival (escape from predators)

 

4.    Reproduction and Development

-  Reproduction: survival of the species

Asexual:  Bacteria and Protists

Sexual:  Higher organisms (most Fungi, Plants and Animals)

 

5.    Adaptation

- modifications to help an organism survive in its environment

  Evolution:  descent with modification ­ one species gives rise to several

       different species, each adapted to its environment and way of life.

 

Classification of Organisms

Taxonomy:  identification and classification of organisms according to similar characteristics

:Linnaeus:  Binomial Nomenclature: scientific name for organism = genus + species names

5 Kingdoms & characteristics of each (some overlap with Lab)

prokaryote vs. eukaryote

 

Scientific Method:  Steps (p. 11) - Know how to apply steps to experiment

Controlled experiment: Control group (or negative control)

 

Reviewing the Chapter (p. 16 ­ always a good idea) & Testing Yourself #1-4, 5,7,8,9,11

 

 

Chapter 2:  Chemistry

(About 15 exam questions will come from Chapter 2)

 

All matter is composed of elements

-  Matter:  anything that has mass and takes up space ­ solid, liquid or gas

-  Elements:  present in both living & nonliving matter

   92 elements are naturally-occurring

In living things, 6 elements predominate:             Carbon

                                                                                 Hydrogen

                                                                                 Oxygen

                                                                                 Nitrogen

                                                                                 Phosphorus

                                                                                 Sulfur

Elements contain atoms

 

Atom:   the smallest part of an element that retains all of its properties.

-  only 1 type of atom in each element

-  composed of subatomic particles:     proton ­ positive charge

                                                               electron ­ negative charge

                                                               neutron ­ neutral charge

 

-  Atomic number = # of protons in the nucleus of an atom

-  Atomic weight = # of protons + # of neutrons in the nucleus of an

     atom (weight of electron is negligible)

-  # protons = # electrons for a given atom

-       Isotopes:  atoms with the same atomic number, but different atomic weights (i.e.:  different # of neutrons)

-  Examples:  12C, 13C, 14C

-  Radioactive Isotopes:  unstable isotopes that emit radiation in the form of radioactive particles or radiant energy when they decay

    

Chemical properties of atoms:

Bohr Model:  electrons orbit in concentric energy levels (electron shells) about the nucleus of an atom

     Electrons of an atom differ in amount of potential (stored) energy

     - electrons closest to the nucleus have the least potential energy

      (nonbonding electrons)

     - electrons farthest from the nucleus have the greatest potential

       energy (valence or bonding electrons)

     Bohr Model (cont.):

     First energy level can contain a maximum of 2 electrons

Second energy level, and all additional energy levels, can contain a maximum of 8 electrons

 

Octet rule:  except for the first energy level, the outermost energy level is most stable when it has 8 electrons (the first energy level is most stable with its maximum of 2 electrons)

 

     Electrons occupy orbitals within energy levels

     -  each orbital can contain a maximum of 2 electrons

     -  the first energy level has 1 orbital (maximum 2 electrons), the 

        second energy level has 4 orbitals (maximum 8 electrons)

 

Bonding:

Compound:  2 or more elements bonded together

Molecule:  smallest part of a compound that retains all of its properties

 

1.  Ionic Bonding: transfer of electrons from one atom to another

-   results in ions:  charged particles resulting from charge imbalance     (greater or fewer electrons than protons) due to electron transfer

-  Examples:  NaCl, MgCl2, Na2O

-  Chemical formulas of compounds based on # of valence electrons

  (example:  from above: MgCl2, Mg has 2 valence electrons to donate,          while Cl can only accept 1, so two Cl atoms are needed to accept the 2 valence electrons donated by one Mg atom)

 

2.  Covalent bonding:  sharing of electrons between 2 or more atoms

-  each atom acquires an octet of valence electrons (electrons in

   outermost shell)

Orbital overlap:  outer orbitals from 2 atoms overlap to share electrons

Examples:  CH4, O2, H2, C6H12O6

 

Oxidation:  loss of electrons or H atoms

Reduction:  gain of electrons or H atoms

Polar Covalent bond:  unequal sharing of electrons between atoms in a covalent bond (eg: water, H2O)

-due to difference in electronegativities of atoms in bonds

-more electronegative atom has slight negative charge, less electronegative  atom has slight positive charge

-asymmetrical differences lead to polar molecules

 

Hydrogen Bonding:

-bond between a slightly positive hydrogen atom of one molecule, and a slightly negative atom (usually oxygen or nitrogen)of the same or another molecule

-weak bonding compared to ionic and covalent bonding, but many bonds increases strength

-good example is water molecules

 

Properties of Water:

1.     resists changes in temperature (in part due to hydrogen bonding)

-calorie:  amount of energy required to raise temperature of 1 gram of water by 1 degree Celsius

-other covalently bonded liquids require about half this energy

-important for organisms (mostly water): maintains normal internal temperatures (homeostasis)

 

2.     Water has a high heat of vaporization

-high boiling point (100 degrees Celsius)

-heat of vaporization (energy required to convert water to steam) is 540 calories (very high)

-energy needed to break hydrogen bonds

 

3.    Water is the universal solvent:

-many compounds dissolve in water (separate into ions)

a.  ionic compounds : salts

b.  polar covalent compounds

     Water is a polar molecule:  the negative ends of water molecules are

      attracted to positively charged ions, and the positive ends of water

      molecules are attracted to negatively charged ions

 

     -Hydrophilic molecules (ionic compounds) attract water

    - Hydrophobic molecules (nonionized, nonpolar) molecules cannot  attract water

Properties of Water (cont.):

4.    Water molecules are cohesive and adhesive

-Cohesive: water molecules are attracted to other water molecules

-Adhesive: water molecules are attracted to other substances (polar surfaces)

 

5.    Water has high surface tension:  due to hydrogen bonding (strengthens interactions)

 

6.    Frozen water is less dense than liquid water

-water expands upon freezing

 

pH scale (power of hydrogen): indicates acidity or basicity of solution

-ranges from 0 (strong acid) to 14 (strong base); pH=7 is neutral

-water ionizes to release hydrogen ions and hydroxide ions

 

Acid:  molecules that release hydrogen ions (H+) when dissolved in water

-acids are hydrogen ion donors

 

Base:  molecules that release hydroxide (OH-) ions , or increase the number of hydroxide ions available, when dissolved in water

-bases are hydrogen ion acceptors

Chapter 2 (cont.)

 

Buffers:  maintain stable pH of solution (resist changes in pH)

-normal pH of blood is 7.4

-Buffers can take up excess hydrogen or hydroxide ions

-Buffers have acidic and basic component

-Blood uses carbonic acid (acidic)­ bicarbonate ion (basic) buffer system

-Bicarbonate ions take up added hydrogen ions, and carbonic acid takes up

 excess hydroxide ions

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Chapter 3:  The Chemistry of Life

(This is the toughest chapter in the book to narrow down to the most important pointsŠ I¹ll try to get a revised (shorter) version out in the next day or so (check back at the site).  For now, focus on the basic definitions.  Keep in mind that approximately one half of the exam (20-25 questions) will come from this chapter.)

 

Cells Contain Organic Molecules (and inorganic molecules)

Organic Molecules:  Carbon-based molecules

-   Carbon atoms are bonded mainly to atoms of hydrogen, oxygen, and   nitrogen, as well as some other atoms

-   Always contain carbon and hydrogen

-   Always covalent-bonding

 

Inorganic Molecules:  Molecules which do not contain carbon and hydrogen (e.g.: salts, strong acids and bases, metal compounds)

-   usually ionic-bonding

 

All living things contain the same classes of primary molecules:  Carbohydrates

Lipids
Proteins
Nucleic Acids

 

Functional Groups:  groups of atoms that always behave in a particular manner when bonded together

Organic molecules composed entirely of carbon and hydrogen are always hydrophobic molecules (not attracted to water)

-   the addition of an ionizable functional group (usually a group that can give up or accept a hydrogen atom) makes an organic molecule hydrophilic (attracted to water)

-   many functional groups (hydroxyl, ketone, amine) do not ionize completely (all molecules do not form positive or negative ions by releasing or accepting a hydrogen atom), yet still retain polar/hydrophilic nature in water

 

Please Note: Structures will NOT be on the examŠ they are here for reference only.  For these, know the functional groups present in each macromolecule (e.g.: Carbohydrates contain hydroxyls, ketones, & aldehydes).

 

Organic molecules and their common functional groups:

(note:  R group is always the remainder of the organic molecule being considered; functional group is in bold)

 

Organic Molecule       Functional Group            Structure     Examples    

 

Carbohydrates:          hydroxyl (alcohol)          R ­ OH       all sugars

                                                                                      (glucose,

                                                                                       fructose, etc.)

                                          O                 

                                                   | |          some sugars

         ketone                          R ­ C ­ R    (fructose)

 

                                                       O

                                                      / /

         aldehyde                       R  ­  C        some sugars

                                                       \       (glucose)

                                                        H

 

 

 

                                                                              O

                                                      / /     

Proteins:                   carboxyl (acid)             R  ­  C        all amino acids

                                                       \      

                                                        OH     

                               

 

                                                                                H

                                                                               /

                                amine (amino)               R  ­  N        all amino acids

                                                                               \

                                                                                 H

 

 

                                    sulfhydryl                     R  ­  SH     some amino

                                                                                          acids (cysteine)

Organic molecules and their common functional groups:

 

Organic Molecule   Functional Group                Structure             Examples

 

Lipids:                 carboxyl (acid)                   see proteins          all fatty acids

                                                                                                                                                                                       O

                                                                           | |

                           phosphate                     R ­ O ­ P ­ OH      phospholipids

                                                                            |

                                                                           OH

 

 

 

 

Nucleic acids:       phosphate                        see lipids               all nucleic acids

 

 

Also:  Some proteins have amino acids with hydroxyl groups

All nucleic acids have a 5-carbon sugar (ribose) with hydroxyl & aldehyde groups

Many, many more modifications of organic molecules with one or more of the above functional groups to serve some specific function in the cell

 

The diversity of organic molecules in organisms is due to:

-       Isomers:  molecules with identical molecular formulas, but different structures (e.g.: glucose, fructose, & galactose (among other 6-carbon sugars)

-       Multiple types of subunits:   - 4 nitrogenous bases in nucleic acids (A, C, G, T/U)

- 20+ different amino acids in proteins

- saturated or unsaturated fatty acids in lipids

- sugar isomerization and modification in

                                           carbohydrates

-       Branching (carbohydrates), Folding (proteins), Packaging (nucleic acids)

(e.g.: secondary, tertiary, & quaternary structure in proteins)

 

 

Organic macromolecules in cells have specific subunits

-   The subunit is a monomer

-   The macromolecule is a polymer, or a chain, of monomers

-   The monomers in a polymer can be the same type, or different types, of subunit

Remember:  there are 20+ different amino acid monomers, and 4 nucleotide monomers (for both DNA and RNA), as well as many different fatty acids (both saturated and unsaturated) in plants and animals and many different monosaccharide isomers (12+ isomers of glucose)

 

Monomer                           Polymer

Monosaccharide                Polysaccharide

Glycerol + 3 fatty acids     Lipid

Amino acid                       Protein

Nucleotide                         Nucleic acid

 

Organic macromolecules are built up by condensation & broken down by hydrolysis

-   Monomer subunits are added to growing chains of organic macromolecules by  condensation reactions: formation of a bond with removal of water

-   Monomer subunits are removed from chains of organic macromolecules by  hydrolysis reactions: breaking of a bond by the addition of water

 

 

Carbohydrates: (contain carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen atoms)

Monosaccharides:  simple sugars with a backbone of 3 to 7 carbon atoms

Glucose is a 6-carbon sugar (hexose) found in the blood of animals, and Fructose is a hexose found in fruits

Ribose is a 5 carbon sugar (pentose) found in RNA (in DNA, the pentose sugar is deoxyribose)

 

Disaccharides:  2 monosaccharides joined by condensation

Maltose (a disaccharide in the digestive tract) = glucose + glucose

Lactose ( a disaccharide in milk) = glucose + galactose (another hexose)

Sucrose (a disaccharide in fruits & vegetables) = glucose + fructose

 

Polysaccharides:  chains of (usually the same or repeating) monosaccharides

-       chains can be unbranched, slightly branched, or highly branched

 

 

Polysaccharides:

1.    Glycogen is a highly branched polymer of glucose, and is the storage form of carbohydrates in animal cells

2.    Starch is a more moderately branched polymer of glucose, and is the storage form of carbohydrates in plant cells

3.    Cellulose is an unbranched polymer of glucose, with adjacent chains held together by hydrogen bonds, giving it a very rigid structure.  It is the major structural component of plant cell walls

4.    Chitin is a polymer of modified glucose monomers.  In chitin, the modified glucose has attached amino and acetyl (-COCH3) groups (N-acetyl-glucosamine).  Chitin is a very rigid polysaccharide found in the exoskeletons of crustaceans (like crabs)

 

 

Lipids:

The monomer in lipids is the triglyceride

One triglyceride = Glycerol + 3 fatty acids

-   Glycerol has 3 carbon atoms and 3 hydroxyl groups

-   Fatty acids have a long hydrocarbon (carbon + hydrogen) chain with a carboxylic acid group at one end

-   Condensation joins a fatty acid to each of the hydroxyl groups in glycerol

-   Both fats and oils are composed of triglycerides

-   The condensation reaction removes the ionizable functional groups from fatty acids and glycerol; hence, these molecules are very hydrophobic

 

In animal cells, lipids are in the form of fats

-   fats are solid at room temperature

-   fatty acids in fats are saturated: each carbon atom in the fatty acid molecules have the maximum number of bonded hydrogen atoms (each carbon is saturated with hydrogen atoms); there are no C=C double bonds

 

In plant cells, lipids are in the form of oils

-   oils are liquid at room temperature

-   fatty acids in fats are unsaturated: one or more carbon atoms in the fatty acid molecule has less than the maximum number of bonded hydrogen atoms; there are one or more C=C double bonds

 

 

 

Waxes = long chain fatty acid molecules bonded to alcohols (R ­ OH)

-   waxes usually serve some structural or protective function (e.g.:  prevention of water loss in plants, protection of the eardrum in animals, formation of bees¹ honeycombs)

 

Phospholipids = Glycerol + 2 fatty acids + 1 polar (phosphate-containing) head group (instead of third fatty acid in triglyceride)

-   allows molecules to have hydrophobic end (2 fatty acids) and hydrophilic (phosphate) end

-   these molecules are the subunits of biological membranes in cells (e.g.: plasma membrane):  the polar head group is in contact with water on the inside and outside of the cell, and the hydrophobic fatty acid chains are buried in the center of the membrane

 

Steroids:

Steroids are composed of 4 fused carbon rings plus some variable functional side group

-   Cholesterol is a precursor form of steroid that is modified to produce several other types of steroids

-   Cholesterol is a structural component of the plasma membrane in animals

-   Steroids function as hormones in animal cells

-   Accumulation of large amounts of these bulky molecules in animals can lead to reduced blood flow and hypertension (high blood pressure)

 

 

Proteins:

Proteins are composed of chains of amino acid monomers

-   There are 20+ different amino acids in cells of living organisms

-   Amino acids have a basic core structure plus an additional functional side chain

-   Each amino acid has a central carbon bonded to an amino group, a carboxylic acid group, a hydrogen atom, and the remaining side chain (R group); it is the R group that differs in different amino acids

-       Condensation of two amino acids in a growing polypeptide chain results in the formation of a peptide bond;  the peptide bond joins the amino group of one amino acid to the carboxylic acid of the previous amino acid in the polypeptideŠ the R groups do not normally bond between amino acids (the exception is cysteine, which forms disulfide (S-S) bonds within and between polypeptide chains for added strength

 

Proteins:

-   Hydrolysis of peptide bonds occurs between specific amino acids in a protein by the activity of specific enzymes (e.g.: pepsin)

-   R groups can be nonpolar & hydrophobic, or polar & hydrophilic, depending on the atoms present

 

 

Polypeptide:  a chain of many amino acids joined by peptide bonds

-   a protein can be composed of one or several polypeptide chains

 

Protein Structure

Primary Structure:  the sequence of amino acids in a polypeptide chain

Secondary Structure:  the formation of discrete structures involving several amino acids within a polypeptide chain (held together by hydrogen bonds)

a.     Alpha helices