Atom
the smallest portion of an element found in the periodic chart; examples include carbon,oxygen,gold
Biomolecule
an organic molecule produced by a living organism
Chemical bond
a connection made between atoms when electrons are attracted, shared, or transferred
Condensation reaction
a chemical reaction that combines smaller molecules and forms water as a byproduct; the reaction is often used to form polymers
Covalent bond
a chemical bond formed when elements share electrons
Hydrolysis reaction
a chemical reaction between water and another molecule that breaks down the molecule into simpler molecules; the reaction splits a water molecule to break apart a polymer into monomers
Inorganic molecule
a molecule that is not organic; most(but not all) do not include carbon; examples include water, ammonia, table salt, and carbon dioxide
Iron
an electrically bond formed when elements transfer electrons
Ionic bond
a chemical bond formed when elements tranfer electrons
Macromolecules
the large biomolecules taht make up living organisms; include proteins, carbohydrates, lipids, and necleic acids
Molecule
a chemical combonation of two or more atoms that forms a seperate substance; fpr example, one molecule of water is made up of two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom
Monomer
a small molecule that may be chemically bonded to other like molecules to form a polymer
Organic molecules
carbon, containing molecules that are generally associated with living organisms
Polymer
a long chain of monomers (small, repeating molecules)
Polymerization
the chemical process of combining monomers to form a polymer; often uses condensation reactions
Carbohydrate
an organic molecule made up of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen; used as a source of energyand gives structure to some types of cells
Cellulose
a polysaccharide used in the cell walls of plants to give cells structual support
Chitin
a polysaccharide that contains nitrogen groups; used to strengthen the exoskeletons of crustaceans and insects and the cell walls of many kinds of fungi
Disaccharide
a polymer of two simple sugars combined into one molecule
Glucose
a monosaccharide produced by plants during photosynthesis; main source of energy for cells
Glycogen
a polysaccharide made by animal cells to store energy
Monosaccharide
a simple sugar
polysaccharide
a polymer of sugar, meaning a long chain of sugar molecules chemically linked together
saccharide
another name for "sugar" or for a sugar polymer
starch
a polysaccharide made by plants to store energy
cholesterol
a type of steroid used in cell membranes and also used to make steroid hormones
Fat
a type of lipid used to store energy and a source of fatty acids
fatty acid
an organic acid that contains a long chain of hydrocarbons (carbon atoms bonded to other carbon atoms and hydrogen atoms)
Hydrophilic
"water-loving"; attracted to water
hydrophobic
"water-hating";repelled by water
lipids
organic molecules made up of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen, but unlike carbohydrates, the do not dissolve in water
monounsaturated fat
a fat that has one double carbon-to-carbon bond
saturated fat
a fat that has all single carbon-to-carbon bonds and the maximum number of hydrogens attached to each carbon
steroid
a type of lipid that can be present in cell membranes or can make up certain hormones
wax
a type of lipid that is used to waterproof leaves, skin, feathers, etc.
amino acids
organic molecules that are building blocks of protein
nitrogen
an element found in amino acids and proteins but NOT typically found in carbohydrates
peptide bond
the bond between each amino acid in a protein
polypeptide
a chain of amino acids
protein
an organic molecule with many important functions; the main structural component of muscle, skin, bone, ets.
Activation energy
the energy needed for a chemical reaction to take place
active site
the part of an enzyme that "attaches to" a substrate
catalyst
a substance that speeds up a chemical reaction without being consumed in the reaction
denature
to change the structure of a protein so that it no longer functions in the same way
enzyme
a biological catalyst that enables chemical reactions to take place in cells
enzyme-substrate complex
the structure that is formed when a substrate binds to the active site of an enzyme
metabolic pathway
a series of reactions, one after another, that occurs in a cell
pH
a measure of the acidity or alkalinity of a substance
substrate
a substance that is changed by an enzyme
deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA)
a nucleic acid molecule made up of two long strands of nucleotides in the shape of a double helix that contains deoxyribose sugar and that store genetic information
double helix
the shape, similar to a twisted ladder, of a DNA molecule
nucleic acid
an organic molecule that contains carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, and phosphorus and makes up RNA and DNA
nucleotide
a molecule that contains a sugar, a phosphate and a nitrogenous base and that links together to form RNA and DNA
phosphate
a group of atoms that contains phosphorus and oxygen; makes up a part of nucleic acids
ribonucleic acid (RNA)
a nucleic acid molecule that contains ribose sugar