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3.1 Organic molecules
  • The characteristics of organic compounds depend on the chemistry of carbon.
  • Variations in carbon backbones and functional groups account for the great diversity of organic molecules.
  • The four classes of organic molecules in cells are carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, and nucleic acids.
  • Large organic molecules called polymers form when their specific monomers join together.
  1. What two compounds are always contained in organic molecules?
    Answer
  2. ______________ are small unit molecules which combine to create large macromolecules called ________________.
    Answer
  3. A ______________ reaction combines two molecules and gives off water, while a ___________ reaction breaks down the bonds between molecules by using the components of water.
    Answer
Essential Study Partner Summaries of major points:
  1. Definitions
  2. Carbon skeletons and functional groups
  3. Building polymers
  4. Condensation and hydrolysis
Study guide General Biology Weblinks
3.2 Carbohydrates
  • Glucose is an immediate energy source from many organisms.
  • Some carbohydrates (starch and glycogen) function as stored energy sources.
  • Other carbohydrates (cellulose and chitin) function as structural compounds.
  1. What are the main functions of carbohydrates in living organisms?
    Answer
  2. Starch and glycogen are polysaccharides which function as _______________, while cellulose and chitin function as _____________.
    1. immediate energy use; energy storage
    2. structural components; immediate energy use
    3. energy storage; structural components
    4. energy storage; immediate energy use
    Answer
 Essential Study Partner Summaries of major points:
  1. Monosaccharides and disaccharides
  2. Polysaccharides are chains of glucose molecules or modified glucose molecules
Art quizzes
3.3 Lipids
  • Lipids vary in structure and function.
  • Fats function as long-term stored energy sources
  • Cellular membranes are a bilayer of phospholipid molecules.
  • Certain hormones are derived from cholesterol, a complex ring compound.
  1. Are lipids soluble in water and why or why not?
    Answer
  2. What are the functions of lipids in living organisms?
    Answer
  3. What about the structure of phospholipids make them well suited as the major component of plasma membranes?
    Answer
Essential Study Partner Summaries of major points:
  1. Lipids are varied in structure
  2. Fats and oils
  3. Waxes
  4. Phospholipids
  5. Steroids
Art quizzes
3.4 Proteins
  • Proteins serve many and varied functions such as support, enzymatic, defensive, regulatory, and motion.
  • Each protein has levels of structure resulting in a particular shape. Hydrogen, ionic, covalent, and hydrophobic bonding all help maintain a protein's normal shape.
  • Environmental conditions can cause a protein to change its shape and no longer function as it did.
  1. List the six major functions of proteins.
    Answer
  2. Amino acids are made up of a carbon bound to a hydrogen atom and 3 other molecules. What are these other molecules and which determines the function of the specific amino acid?
    Answer
  3. Polypeptides are long chains of _____________ held together by _________________ bonds.
    Answer
  4. Describe the levels of organization of protein molecules and explain the importance of the resulting 3-dimensional shape.
    Answer
Essential Study Partner Summaries of major points:
  1. Protein functions
  2. Amino acids
  3. Peptides
  4. Levels of protein structure
  5. Denaturation of proteins
Art Quizzes Explorations Lab exercises General Biology Weblinks
3.5 Nucleic Acids
  • Genes are composed of DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid). DNA specifies the correct ordering of amino acids in proteins, with RNA as a needful intermediary.
  • The nucleotide ATP serves as a carrier of chemical energy in cells.
  1. What are the 4 major categories (types) of nucleic acids and the function of each?
    Answer
  2. What three types of molecule make up a nucleotide?
    Answer
  3. What are the differences between DNA and RNA?
    Answer
  4. In double stranded DNA, bases are paired between strands; thymine with _____________ and guanine with _________________.
    Answer
Essential Study Partner Summaries of major points:
  1. Nucleic acid functions
  2. Structure of DNA and RNA
  3. ATP (Adenosine Triphosphate
Art quizzes





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