Organic Molecules

4 Groups of Organic Compounds Found in Living Things

• “Organic” Compounds

– Organic means “contains Carbon”

Carbon MoleculesCarbon-based molecules have three basic structures

Straight Chain

Branched Chain

Ring

All structures based on carbon's ability to form four covalent bonds

• “Biomolecules” = large organic compounds

– Built by bonding small molecules (monomers) together to form chains called “polymers”

– Formed by a chemical reaction called “condensation”

Condensation

H OH

H20

H20

H20

“lysis” = split apart

HOW TO BUILD A LARGER MOLECULE BY COMBINING SMALLER MOLECULES.

HOW TO BREAK DOWN A LARGER MOLECULE INTO SMALLER MOLECULES.

Hydrolysis

• ISOMER = Compounds with the same chemical formula, but different 3D structure

Chemical formula

C6H1206 = glucose

C6H1206 = fructose

3D Structure

O

OH

OH

HO

OH

CH2OH

OHOCH2

OH

OH

OH

CH2OH

CARBOHYDRATES

• Made up of C, H, & O

• Main source of energy

• Used for structural purposes in plants (cellulose)

CARBOHYDRATES

• SIMPLEST = single sugar molecules = “monosaccharide”– Example: glucose, fructose

glucose

Monosaccharide

fructose

Monosaccharide Disaccharide

sucrose

H20

Think of each monosaccharide as a lego piece.

A disaccharide is made up of two monosaccharides

CARBOHYDRATES

• LARGEST = “polysaccharide”– Example: starch, fiber, cellulose, glycogen

Polysaccharide

A polysaccharide is made up of many monosaccharides.

Lipids

• Aka “fats”

• Made up of mostly C & H

• Ex: fats, oils, waxes, steroids

• Used to store energy (insulation, too)

• Part of the cell membrane and waterproof covering

• ALL are INSOLUBLE in water because they are NON POLAR

Most fats in our bodies and foods are in the form of 'triglyceride' molecules = one glycerol (or glycerin, a sugar alcohol) + three fatty acids attached

Lipids

Lipids

2

Long chain of CH is called “fatty acid chain”

Example: lard

= maximum # of H+ atoms

Example: olive oil

= at least 1 C = C (carbon-carbon double bond)

= more than one C = C

(carbon-carbon double bond)

Example: cooking oil

Nucleic Acids

• They contain C, H, O, N, P

• Nucleic Acids = polymers (made up of nucleotides)

nucleotide nucleotide nucleotide

N N N

“Nucleic Acid”

monomermonomer

Nucleic Acids

• 3 parts of a nucleotide A) 5 carbon sugar

(pentose)

B) Phosphate group

C) Nitrogenous base

Nucleic Acids

• Store and transmit genetic info

• 2 types – DNA sugar = deoxyribose– RNA sugar = ribose

Proteins

• Contain C, H, O, N and some S

• Basic building block = Amino acid (AA)

• Peptide bonds hold molecules (AA) together

Peptide bond

Proteins

• 3 parts of an amino acid– amino acid (-NH2)– carboxyl group (-COOH)– R group (always different)

• Hydrogen bonds fold

amino acid into

specific shapes for

function

Protein

• Each protein has a specific role– Control rate of reaction– Regulate cell processes– Form bones and muscles– Transport substances

in/out of cell

• Example: “enzymes” = “proteins” that change rate of reaction, increase pH and temperature