O R G A N I Z AT I O N

Level of organization
• Subatomic Particles: electrons, protons and neutrons
• Atom: hydrogen atom, lithium atom, etc.
• Molecule: water molecule, glucose molecule, etc.
• Macromolecule: protein molecule, DNA molecule, etc.
• Organelle: mitochondrion, Golgi apparatus, nucleus, etc.
• Cell: muscle cell, nerve cell, etc.
• Tissue: epithelia, connective, muscle and nerve
• Organ: skin, liver, heart, kidney, etc.
• System: skeletal system, digestive system, etc.
• Organism: the human
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 Chemical level of organization

• Everything in our physical world is made of chemicals.

• The air we breathe is a mixture of chemicals in the form of gases. Water, gasoline
and foods are chemicals. Our bodies are complex arrangements of thousands of
chemicals.
• The simplest level of organization of the body is the chemical level.
• We must start to think of chemistry not as a complicated science, but as the air, water
and food we need as well as every substance that is part of us.

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Elements
• All matter, both living and not living, is made of elements.

• An element is a substance made of only one type of atoms (therefore, an atom is the
smallest part of an element).

• There are 92 naturally occurring elements in the world around us.

• Examples are hydrogen (H), iron (Fe), oxygen (O), calcium (Ca), nitrogen (N) and
carbon (C).

• In nature, an element does not usually exist by itself but rather combines with the atoms
of other elements to form compounds, such as H2O, CO2 and C6H12O6.

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• The elements carbon, hydrogen, E L E ME N T S I N T H E H U MAN BO DY

oxygen, nitrogen, phosphorus and

sulfur are found in all living things. If
calcium is included, these seven
elements make up approximately 99%
of the human body (weight).

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Atoms
• Atoms are the smallest parts of an element that have the characteristics of that element.
• An atom consists of three major subunits or particles: protons (+), neutrons (0) and
electrons (-).
• The number of protons in an atom gives it its atomic number.
• Protons and neutrons have mass and weight; they give an atom its atomic weight.
• In an atom, the number of protons (+) equals the number of electrons (-) therefore, an
atom is electrically neutral.
• The electrons, however, are important since they may enable an atom to connect, or
bond, to other atoms to form molecules.
• A molecule is a combination of atoms that are so tightly bound together making the
molecule behaves as a single unit.
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Chemical bonds
• A chemical bond is not a structure, but rather a force or attraction between
positive and negative electrical charges that keeps two or more atoms closely
associated with each other to form a molecule.
• Molecules formed by chemical bonding often have physical characteristics
different from those of the atoms of the original elements. For example, the
elements hydrogen and oxygen are gases, but the molecules of water (their
combination) are liquid.
• The types of chemical bonds are:

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(1) Ionic bonds
• An ionic bond involves the loss of one or more electrons by one atom and the
gain of the electron (s) by another atom or atoms.
• An example: the bond formed between sodium (Na+) and chlorine (Cl-) to form
NaCl.
(2) Covalent bonds
• They involve the sharing of electrons between atoms.
• An example: the sharing of two electrons between two atoms of oxygen to form a
molecule of oxygen gas (O2), which is the form in which oxygen exists in the
atmosphere.

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(3) Disulfide bonds
• A disulfide bond is a covalent bond formed between two atoms of sulfur, usually within the
same large protein molecule.
• An example: the hormone insulin has two disulfide bonds that help maintain its proper shape
and function. Other proteins with shapes that depend upon disulfide bonds are antibodies of the
immune system and keratin of the skin and hair.
(4) Hydrogen bond
• A hydrogen bond does not involve the sharing or exchange of electrons, but rather results
because of a property of hydrogen atoms.
• A hydrogen atom in a covalent bond shows a slight positive charge and may then be attracted to
a nearby oxygen or nitrogen atom, which has a slight negative charge.
• Although they are weak bonds, hydrogen bonds are important.
• An example: proteins and DNA have very specific functions that depend upon their three-
dimensional shapes. The shapes of these molecules are often maintained by hydrogen bonds.
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Chemical reactions
(1) Synthesis reaction
• In a synthesis reaction, bonds are formed to join two or more atoms or molecules to
make a new compound.
• An example: the production of proteins are synthesized by the bonding of many amino
acids.
• Synthesis reactions require energy for the formation of bonds.
(2) Decomposition reaction
• In a decomposition reaction, bonds are broken, and a large molecule is changed to two
or more smaller ones.
• An example: the digestion of large molecules of starch into many smaller glucose
molecules.
• Some decomposition reactions release energy.
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Inorganic compounds of importance
(1) Water
• It makes up 60% to 75% of the body.
• It works as solvent; for transport of nutrients in the blood and excretion of
wastes in urine.
• It works as lubricant; such as mucus in the digestive tract.
• It changes temperature slowly and prevents sudden changes in body
temperature; absorbs body heat in evaporation of sweat.
• The locations of water within the body include:
- Intracellular (within cells): 65% of total body water.
- Extracellular (out of cells): 35% of total body water.

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(2) Oxygen TRACE ELEMENTS

• It constitutes 21% of the atmosphere.

• It is essential for cell respiration; the
breakdown of food molecules to release
energy.
(3) Carbon dioxide
• Produced as a waste product of cell
respiration.
• Must be exhaled (excess CO2 causes
acidosis).
(4) Trace elements
• Minerals needed in small amounts.

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(5) Acids, bases and pH

• The pH scale ranges from 0 to 14; 7 is neutral; below 7 is acidic; above 7 is

alkaline.
• An acid increases the H+ ion concentration of a solution whereas a base
decreases the H+ ion concentration (or increases the OH– ion concentration).
• The pH of cells is about 6.8. The pH range of blood is 7.35 to 7.45.
• Buffer systems maintain normal pH by reacting with strong acids or strong bases
to change them to substances that do not greatly change pH.
• The bicarbonate buffer system consists of H2CO3 and NaHCO3.

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 Organic compounds of importance
(1) Carbohydrates
a) Monosaccharides (simple sugars)
- Glucose (C6H12O6): is the primary energy source for cell respiration.
- Ribose sugars: are part of the nucleic acids (DNA and RNA).
b) Disaccharides (made of two hexose sugars)
- Sucrose, lactose and maltose are digested to monosaccharides and used for cell respiration.
c) Oligosaccharides (consist of from 3 to 20 monosaccharides)
- They are antigens on the cell membrane that identify cells as “self”.
d) Polysaccharides (made of thousands of glucose molecules)
- Starches are plant products broken down in digestion to glucose.
- Glycogen is the form in which glucose is stored in the liver and muscles.
- Cellulose, the fiber portion of plant cells, cannot be digested but promotes efficient peristalsis in the colon.
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(2) Lipids
a) True fats (made of fatty acids and glycerol)
- Triglycerides are a storage form for potential energy in adipose tissue.
b) Phospholipids (diglycerides with a phosphate group)
- Myelin is a phospholipid that provides electrical insulation for nerve cells.
c) Steroids (consist of four rings of carbon and hydrogen)
- Cholesterol, produced by the liver and consumed in food, is the basic steroid from
which the body manufactures other steroid hormones, vitamin D and bile salts.

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(3) Proteins

• Amino acids are the subunits of proteins; 20 amino acids make up human
proteins. Peptide bonds join amino acids to one another.
• Amino acids in excess of the need for protein synthesis are converted to simple
carbohydrates or to fat, for energy production.
• Enzymes (constitute of proteins) are catalysts, which speed up reactions without
additional energy.
• The enzyme remains unchanged after the product of the reaction is released.
Each enzyme is specific for one type of reaction.

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(4) Nucleic acids
• Nucleotides are the subunits of nucleic acids. A nucleotide consists of a pentose sugar,
a phosphate group and a nitrogenous base.
• DNA is a double strand of nucleotides, coiled into a double helix, with complementary
base pairing: A–T and G–C.
• DNA makes up the chromosomes of cells and is the genetic code for the synthesis of
proteins.
• RNA is a single strand of nucleotides, synthesized from DNA, with U in place of T.
RNA functions in protein synthesis.
• ATP is a nucleotide that is specialized to trap and release energy.
• Energy released from food in cell respiration is used to synthesize ATP from ADP + P.
• When cells need energy, ATP is broken down to ADP + P and the energy is released for
cell processes.

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