INTRODUCTION

• Biochemistry is the application of chemistry to the study of biological

processes at the cellular and molecular level.

• The term was introduced by German Chemist Carl Newberg in 1903

• It emerge as a distinct discipline around the beginning of the 20th century
when scientists combine chemistry , physiology and biology to investigate the
chemistry of living systems by studying;

A. The structure and behavior of the complex molecules found in biological

material and

B. The ways theses molecules interact to form cells, tissues and whole
organism
 INTRODUCTION
• Biochemistry has become the language of medicine as it build
the basis of drug action, drug synthesis and prevention of
diseases
• It includes the study of chemical nature of all living matter
from the small virus and microorganisms to the most complex
and highly evolved human being
• Knowledge of biochemistry is used to control diseases,
abnormal metabolism and the treatment of deficiencies
 BIOCHEMISTRY Defined

Biochemistry is the branch of science concerned

with the chemical and physico-chemical
processes which occur within living organisms

Or

It is the study of the chemistry of life processes

 PRINCIPLES OF BIOCHEMISTRY
ON THE BASIS of which a biochemisht work by remembring these Rules

• Cells are highly organized and constant source of energy is required to

maintain the ordered state
• Living processes contains thousands of chemical reaction. Precise
regulation and integration of theses reactions are required to maintain life
• Certain important reactions e.g. Glycolysis is found in almost all organisms
• All organisms use the same type of molecules. Carbohydrates, proteins,
lipids and nucleic acids
• Instruction for growth, reproduction and development gor each organism is
encoded in their DNA
 OBJCTIVES OF BIOCHEMISTRY
• To study and understand the structure and properties of substances:
A. which constitutes the frame work of cell and tissues

B. which enter the cell as source of energy or leave the cell as waste

• To study the activity of enzymes

• To study the processes that convert diet into compounds which are
the characteristics of the cells of a given species

• To study about multifold energy requiring process of the living cell

• To study chemistry of inheritance
 Biochemistry finds its applications in
the field of:
• Medicine
• Agriculture
• Forensic
• Dentistry
• Anthropology
• Industrial Applications
• Environmental Applications etc
 IMPORTANCE OF BIOCHEMISTRY
• It deals with the structure and function of cellular components
such as proteins, carbohydrate, lipids, nucleic acids and other
biomolecules

• Basic principles of biochemistry are common to all living

things
 CELL-AS A BASIC UNIT
• The cell is the basic, structural and functional unit of living
organism
• Discovered by Robert Hook
• The smallest unit of life, classified as a living thing, and often
called the building block of life
• Some organisms re are unicellular e.g. bacteria
• Others are multicellular e.g. humans having about 100 trillion
cells
PLANT CELL
Animal cell