Reviewer in Biology

Protein- A large macromolecules consists of one or more long chains of amino acids

- One of the most abundant organic molecules in living system

- Has diverse function

Functions of Protein

a. Structural- are fibrous and stringy and provide support. Examples include keratin, collagen, and
elastin.
b. Transport - Speed up movement of substances across biological membranes (Hemoglobin,
albumin, integral protein)
c. Defense - Protect the body from antigen (antibodies)
d. Contractile- Responsible for movement (actin and myosin)
e. Storage- store amino acids. Examples include albumin, legume storage protein.
f. Hormones- Coordinate the activity of different body systems (Insulin, Oxytocin).
g. Enzyme- Increase the rate of biological reaction (lipase and amylase)

Structure of Protein

Amino Acid

- organic compounds that combine to form proteins

- Monomer of protein

Non- Polar

- Hydrophobic
- Has equal number of amino group and carboxyl group
 - Uncharged

Polar uncharged

- Involves in H+ binding
- Hydrophilic

Polar with + charge

- Has more amino group than carboxyl group

- Basic

Polar with – charge

- Has more carboxyl group than amino group

- Acidic

Essential AMINO ACID

- Essential amino acids cannot be made by the body. As a result, they must come from food.
- The 9 essential amino acids are: histidine, isoleucine, leucine, lysine, methionine, phenylalanine,
threonine, tryptophan, and valine.

Non- Essential AMINO ACID

- An amino acid that can be made by humans and so is not essential to the human diet.
- The 11 nonessential amino acids: alanine, arginine, asparagine, aspartic acid, cysteine,
glutamic acid, glutamine, glycine, proline, serine, and tyrosine.

POLYPEPTIDE

- a linear organic polymer consisting of a large number of amino-acid residues bonded together in
a chain

Levels of Protein Organization

Primary structure

- is simply the order of amino acids in polypeptide strands

- Linear
- one dimensional sequence of amino acid polymer

Secondary structure

- Three-dimensional folding of the polypeptide chain in the protein

- Alpha-helix and beta-pleated sheet

Tertiary structure

- Three dimensional folding pattern of s protein due to side chain interaction.

- These include hydrophobic interactions, ionic bonding
Quaternary structure

- Protein consisting of more than one amino acid.

- Globular
- Formed by hydrogen bonding, covalent bonding, hydrophobic packaging and hydrophilic
exposure

Denaturation - The alteration of protein shaped and loss of function through some stress

Renaturation- The reconstruction of a protein to their original form especially after denaturation

Related Disease

Sickle Cell disease- Sickle cell disease is a group of disorders that affects hemoglobin, the molecule in
red blood cells that delivers oxygen to cells throughout the body. People with this disorder have atypical
hemoglobin molecules called hemoglobin S, which can distort red blood cells into a sickle, or crescent,
shape.

Carbohydrates

- Biological molecules made of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen

- This composition gives carbohydrates their name: they are made up of carbon (carbo-) plus
water (-hydrate).
- Carbohydrates are the most abundant organic compounds in living organisms.
- They originate as products from carbon dioxide and water by photosynthesis.
- carbohydrates, are commonly referred to as sugars

Functions of Carbohydrates

- for energy supply (starch, glycogen, dextran) and production of fats.

- Serve as energy storage, fuels, and metabolic intermediates
- Linked to many proteins and lipids; important in cell-cell communication and in interactions
between cells and other elements in the cellular environment.
- structural elements in the cell walls of bacteria (peptidoglycan or murein), plants (cellulose) and
animals (chitin).
- Formation of the structural framework of RNA and DNA (ribonucleic acid and deoxyribonucleic
acid).

Structure of Carbohydrates

Stoichiometric formula

(CH20)n
(n = number of carbon in the molecule)

1:2:1 ratio
MOLECULAR STRUCTURE

Carbohydrates are classified into 3 subtypes: Monosaccharides, Disaccharides, and Polysaccharides

Monosaccharides

- Monomer of carbohydrate
- The number of carbons usually ranges from 3 to 7
- Most of the oxygen atoms in monosaccharides are found in hydroxyl (OH) groups but one of
them is part of a carbonyl (C=O) group (Ketose and Aldose)

Sugars are also named according to their number of carbons: some of the most common types are
trioses (three carbons), pentoses (five carbons), and hexoses (six carbons).

Examples of Monosaccharides

One important monosaccharide is glucose, a six-carbon sugar with the formula C6H12O6. Other
common monosaccharides include galactose (which forms part of lactose, the sugar found in milk) and
fructose (found in fruit).
Haworth Projection - is a common way of writing a structural formula to represent the cyclic structure
of monosaccharides with a simple three-dimensional perspective.

Fischer Projection - a two-dimensional representation of a three-dimensional organic molecule by

projection. Fischer projections were originally proposed for the depiction of carbohydrates and used by
chemists, particularly in organic chemistry and biochemistry.

Disaccharides

- (di- = “two”) form when two monosaccharides join together via a dehydration reaction, also
known as a condensation reaction or dehydration synthesis.
- The hydroxyl group of one monosaccharide combines with the hydrogen of another, releasing a
molecule of water and forming a covalent bond known as a glycosidic linkage (bond).

Common disaccharides include lactose, maltose, and sucrose

Lactose- Lactose is a disaccharide consisting of glucose and galactose and is found naturally in
milk. (Glucose + Galactose = Lactose)

Maltose - Maltose, or malt sugar, is a disaccharide made up of two glucose molecules. (Glucose +
Glucose = Maltose)
Sucrose- The most common disaccharide is sucrose (table sugar), which is made of glucose and fructose.
(Glucose + Fructose=Sucrose)

Polysaccharides

- A long chain of monosaccharides linked by glycosidic bonds is known as a polysaccharide (poly-

= “many”).
- The chain may be branched or unbranched and may contain different types of
monosaccharides.

Starch, glycogen, cellulose, and chitin are some major examples of polysaccharides important in living
organisms.

Starch

- stored form of sugars in plants and is made up of a mixture of two polysaccharides, amylose and
amylopectin (both polymers of glucose)
- excess glucose, beyond the plant’s immediate energy needs synthesized in photosynthesis is
stored as starch in different plant parts, including roots and seeds.
- Starch is a heteropolysaccharide that is composed of two polysaccharide: amylose and
amylopectin

Glycogen

- Glycogen is the storage form of glucose in humans and other vertebrates. Like starch, glycogen
is a polymer of glucose monomers, and it is even more highly branched than amylopectin.
- Glycogen is usually stored in liver and muscle cells. Whenever blood glucose levels decrease,
glycogen is broken down via hydrolysis to release glucose monomers that cells can absorb and
use.

Cellulose

- Cellulose, is a major component of plant cell walls, which are rigid structures that enclose the
cells (and help make lettuce and other veggies crunchy).
- Cellulose is made of glucose monomers in their β form
- The β glycosidic linkages in cellulose can't be broken by human digestive enzymes, so humans
are not able to digest cellulose.

Chitin

- Chitin is a naturally occurring fiber‐forming polymer that plays a protective role in many lower
eukaryotes similar to that of cellulose in plants.
- a long‐chain unbranched polysaccharide made of N‐acetylglucosamine residues linked through
β‐1,4 covalent bonds; it is the second most abundant organic compound in nature, after
cellulose.
- Arthropods (such as insects and crustaceans) have a hard external skeleton, called the
exoskeleton, which protects their softer internal body parts. This exoskeleton is made of the
macromolecule chitin.
 - Chitin is also the major component of fungal cell wall.

Related Diseases

Diabetes is a disease that occurs when your blood glucose, also called blood sugar, is too high. Blood
glucose is your main source of energy and comes from the food you eat. Insulin, a hormone made by the
pancreas, helps glucose from food get into your cells to be used for energy. Sometimes your body
doesn’t make enough—or any—insulin or doesn’t use insulin well. Glucose then stays in your blood and
doesn’t reach your cells.

Lactose intolerance is a common digestive problem where the body is unable to digest lactose, a type of
sugar mainly found in milk and dairy products.

LIPID

• include a diverse group of compounds that are nonpolar in nature

• Generally not a macromolecule

FUNCTIONS OF LIPIDS

• Cells store energy for long term use in the form of fats

• Structural component of cell

• Provides insulation for animals; keeping animals and plants dry.

• components of hormones and precursors for prostaglandin synthesis

STRUCTURE

Glycerol and fatty acid

- Two main components of lipid

- The bond between the molecules are covalent and ester bonds

Fatty Acid

• Fatty acids exist as short, medium and long chains of molecules that are major constituents of
triglycerides and phospholipids.

• Fatty acids are aliphatic carboxylic acids.

• The chain maybe saturated (containing no double bonds) or unsaturated (containing one or
more double bonds)

Fatty Acid General Formula

R-(CH2)n-COOH
Two Types of Fatty Acid

SATURATED FATTY ACIDS- If there are only single bonds between neighboring carbons in the
hydrocarbon chain, the fatty acid is said to be saturated.

Long straight fatty acids with single bonds tend to get packed tightly and are solid at room temperature.

Usually derived from animals

“bad fats”

UNSATURATED FATTY ACIDS - When the hydrocarbon chain contains a double bond, the fatty acid is
said to be unsaturated.

Most unsaturated fats are liquid at room temperature and are called oils.

Each double bond may be in a cis or trans configuration

CIS-UNSATURATED FATTY ACIDS

In the CIS configuration, both hydrogens are on the same side of the hydrocarbon chain.

A cis double bond causes a kink in the chain.

TRANS-UNSATURATED FATTY ACIDS

In the TRANS configuration, hydrogens are on the opposite side of the hydrocarbon chain.

MONO-UNSATURATED FATTY ACIDS

There is one double-bond in the molecule

POLY-UNSATURATED FATTY ACIDS

There is a multiple double-bonds in the molecule

ESSENTIAL FATTY ACIDS

Omega-3 and omega-6 Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) are the major families of PUFA that can be
found as components of the human diet

CLASSES OF LIPIDS

SPHINGOSINE

• an 18-carbon amino alcohol with an unsaturated hydrocarbon chain, which forms a primary part
of sphingolipids (a class of cell membrane lipids that include sphingomyelin, an important phospholipid.)

PHOSPHOLIPID

• They can form structures called micelles

• when phospholipids congregate, the hydrophobic fatty acid tails join together in the center of
the sphere away from the aqueous environment and the polar heads are exposed to the outside.

• are found in biological membranes

• The components of phospholipids include a hydrophobic tail and hydrophilic head. The
hydrophobic tail consists of two hydrocarbon chains.

Waxes

• waxes can be found in nature as coatings on leaves and stems of plants, and prevents the plant
from losing excessive amounts of water.

Steroids

• Steroids have a fused ring structure

• Hydrophobic and insoluble with water

• All steroids have four linked carbon rings and most of them have a short tail

Cholesterol

The most common steroid.

relatively medium molecule that contains 4 adjacent cyclic hydrocarbon molecules with three six-
member rings and one five-member ring that has a hydroxyl and a saturated hydrocarbon chain
terminals.

It is an essential predecessor to sex hormones that exists in males (testosterone) and females (estradiol).
Also an essential component in vitamin D that enables the body to utilize calcium to form bones.

Animals acquire very little cholesterol from the food they eat; they make cholesterol within the body.