Bio Notes AS level (Unit 1)

THE IMPORTANCE OF WATER

Water is a polar solvent. Because it is a polar molecule, many ionic
substances like sodium chloride will dissolve in it (see fig H). Many
covalently bonded substances are also polar and will dissolve in
water.
 Water is an excellent transport medium because the dipole nature
of water enables many different substances to dissolve in it.

 Ice is less dense than water and floats. forming an insulating layer
and helping to prevent the water underneath it from freezing. It
also melts quickly because, being at the top, it is exposed to the
sun.

 Water is slow to absorb and release heat - it has a high specific heat
capacity. The hydrogen bonds between the molecules need a lot of
energy to separate them This means the temperature of large bodies
of water such as lakes and seas does not change much throughout
the year.

 Water is a liquid - it cannot be compressed.

 Water molecules are cohesive - the forces between the molecules

mean they stick together.

 Water molecules are adhesive - they are attracted to other different

molecules.

 Water has a very high surface tension because the attraction

between the water molecules, including hydrogen bonds, is greater
 than the attraction between the water molecules and the air. Surface
tension is very important in plant transport systems, and also
affects life at the surface of ponds, lakes and other water masses.

MONOSACCHARIDES: THE SIMPLE SUGARS

Monosaccharides are simple sugars in which there is one oxygen
atom and two hydrogen atoms for each carbon atom in the molecule.
Glucose has two isomers α-glucose and β-glucose. The two isomers
have different arrangements of the atoms on the side chains of the
molecule. The different isomers form different bonds between
neighboring glucose molecules, and this affects the polymers that are
made.
DISACCHARIDES: THE DOUBLE SUGARS
Disaccharides consist of two monosaccharides joined together.
Two monosaccharides join in a condensation reaction to form a
disaccharide, and a molecule of water (H20) is released.
The link between the two monosaccharides results in a covalent bond
known as a glycosidic bond.
Testing for sugars (Core practical 1)
Benedict's solution is a chemical reagent for testing reducing sugars.
It is a bright blue solution that contains copper (II) ions. Some sugars
react readily with this solution when heated gently and reduce the
copper (II) ions to copper (I) ions; a precipitate is formed and a color
change from blue to orange occurs.
All of the monosaccharides and some disaccharides (but not sucrose)
are reducing sugars.
Some sugars do not react with Benedict's solution. You can heat a
non-reducing sugar such as sucrose with a few drops of hydrochloric
acid, allow it to cool and then neutralize the solution with sodium
hydrogen carbonate to hydrolyze the glycosidic bonds leading to a
positive Benedict’s test.
Subject Vocabulary
monosaccharide a single sugar monomer
disaccharide a sugar made up of two monosaccharide units joined by
a glycosidic bond, formed in a condensation reaction
polysaccharide a polymer consisting of long chains of
monosaccharide units joined by glycosidic bonds
condensation reaction a reaction in which a molecule of water is
removed from the reacting molecules as a bond is formed between
them
glycosidic bond a covalent bond formed between two
monosaccharides in a condensation reaction, which can be broken
down by a hydrolysis reaction to release the monosaccharide units

The glycosidic bond between two glucose units is split by a process

known as hydrolysis. The hydrolysis reaction is the opposite of the
condensation reaction that created the molecule, so water is added to
the bond.
Hydrolysis takes place during digestion in the gut, and also in the
muscle and liver cells when the carbohydrate stores are broken down
to release sugars for use in cellular respiration.
Foods containing monosaccharides and disaccharides are a good
source of relatively instant energy. However, these cannot be used to
store energy because they are chemically active, and they are very
soluble in water, so they affect the water balance of the cells.

POLYSACCHARIDES
 They can form very compact molecules, which take up little space.

 They are physically and chemically inactive, so they do not

interfere with the other functions of the cell.

 They are not very soluble in water, so have almost no

effect on water potential within a cell and cause no
osmotic water movements.

STARCH
Starch, which is insoluble and compact but can be broken down
rapidly to release glucose when it is needed.
Starch consists of long chains of α-glucose.
 Amylose: an unbranched polymer of between 200 and 5000
glucose units. As the chain lengthens the molecule spirals,
which makes it more compact for storage.
 Amylopectin: a branched polymer of glucose units. The
branching chains have many terminal glucose units that can be
broken off rapidly when energy is needed.

Amylase has only 1,4-glycosidic bonds, which is why the molecules

are long unbranched chains.
In amylopectin, many of the glucose molecules are joined by 1,4-
glycosidic bonds, but there are also a few 1,6-glycosidic bonds.
Starch has a combination of straight-chain amylase and branched
chain amylopectin molecules
Testing for starch (Core Practical 1)
If you add a few drops of reddish-brown iodine solution to a sample
containing starch (whether it is a solid sample or a sample in
solution), the iodine solution will turn blue-black.
GLYCOGEN
Glycogen has many α-glucose units and it is very compact.
glycogen molecule has more 1,6-glycosidic bonds than the starch
molecule, giving it many side branches. This means that glycogen can
be broken down very rapidly. This makes it an ideal source of glucose
for animals which may require rapid release of energy.

Subject Vocabulary
hydrolysis a reaction in which bonds are broken by the addition of a
molecule of water.

1A.4 LIPIDS
When lipids are oxidized in the respiration process, the bonds are
broken and carbon dioxide and water are the final products.
Fats and oils contain two types of organic chemical substance, fatty
acids and glycerol. These are combined using ester bonds.
In a saturated fatty acid, each carbon atom is joined to the one next to
it by a single covalent bond.
In an unsaturated fatty acid, the carbon chains have one or more
double covalent bonds between carbon atoms in them.
A polyunsaturated fatty acid has more than one carbon-carbon
double bond.
FORMING ESTER BONDS
A triglyceride is made when glycerol combines with three fatty acids.
A bond is formed in a condensation reaction between the carboxyl
group (--COOH) of a fatty acid and one of the hydroxyl groups (-OH)
of the glycerol. A molecule of water is removed and the bond created
is called an ester bond. This type of condensation reaction is called
esterification.

1A.5 PROTEINS
Proteins are a group of macromolecules made up of many small
monomer units called amino acids joined together by condensation
reactions.
AMINO ACIDS
There is always an amino group (-NH2) and a carboxyl group (-
COOH) attached to a carbon atom. The group known as the R group
varies between amino acids.
The R groups are not involved in the reactions which join the amino
acids together, but the structure of the R group does affect the way the
amino acid interacts with others within the protein molecule. (This
will mainly depend on whether the R group is polar or not, and these
interactions affect the tertiary structure of the protein formed.)

FORMING PROTEINS FROM AMINO ACIDS

Amino acids join by a reaction between the amino group of one
amino acid, and the carboxyl group of another. They join in a
condensation reaction and a molecule of water is released. A peptide
bond is formed when two amino acids join, and a dipeptide is the
result.
More and more amino acids join to form polypeptide chains. A
polypeptide forms a protein when the structure of the chain changes
by folding or coiling or associates with other polypeptide chains.
BONDS IN PROTEINS
HYDROGEN BONDS
In amino acids, tiny negative charges are present on the oxygen of the
carboxyl groups and tiny positive charges are present on the hydrogen
atoms of the amino groups. When these charged groups are close to
each other, the opposite charges attract, forming a hydrogen bond.
Hydrogen bonds are weak so there are many of them holding the
protein together very firmly. They are very important in the folding
and coiling of polypeptide chains. Hydrogen bonds break easily and
reform if pH or temperature conditions change.
DISULFIDE BONDS
Disulfide bonds form when two cysteine molecules are close together
in the structure of a polypeptide. An oxidation reaction occurs
between the two sulfur-containing groups, resulting in a strong
covalent bond known as a disulfide bond. These disulfide bonds are
much stronger than hydrogen bonds but they happen much less often.
They are important for holding the folded polypeptide chains in place.