Biological Molecules: Carbohydrates and Lipids
Dehydration Synthesis
• How many servings are in this container?
• How many total food calories (C) are in this
container?
• How much fat is present in one serving?
• How much carbohydrates are present in one
serving?
• Can this food sample be eaten often or
sparingly?
Abundant Elements in the Human Body
What do humans get from food?
• Heterotrophs, such as human beings, obtain
energy and raw materials from food. These are
important for cell growth, cell division,
metabolism, repair, and maintenance of the
body. Nutrients can be classified as either
organic nutrients or inorganic nutrients.
Monomers and Polymers
• Many macromolecules are polymers, large
molecules made from two or more repeating
units called monomers.
• Large biological molecules often assemble via
dehydration synthesis reactions, in which one
monomer forms a covalent bond to another
monomer (or growing chain of monomers),
releasing a water molecule in the process.
Hydrolysis
• Polymers are broken down into monomers via
hydrolysis reactions, in which a bond is broken,
or lysed, by addition of a water molecule.
Carbohydrates
• Carbohydrates are organic compounds made up
of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen. These
compounds have a general formula of CₙH₂ₙOₙ.
This means that the hydrogen and oxygen
atoms are present in a ratio of 2:1.
• Usually good sources of raw materials for other
organic molecules and energy.
 • Mainly come from plants although they are
found in all organisms.

How are carbohydrates formed?

• Carbohydrates are composed of monomers,
called monosaccharides.
• Form covalent bonds when one monomer loses
a hydroxyl group and the other loses a
hydrogen atom in dehydration or condensation
reactions, forming disaccharides.
o This reaction requires energy to occur. The
bond formed is called a glycosidic linkage.
• Longer polysaccharide chains are formed by
monomer addition through succeeding
dehydration reactions.

How are carbohydrates classified?

Carbohydrates can be classified into three main
categories, according to increasing complexity:
• monosaccharides (monos means single and
sacchar means sugar)
• disaccharides (di means two)
• polysaccharides (poly means many)
Monosaccharides
Monosaccharides have a molecular formula of
(CH₂O)ₙ, where n can be 3, 5 or 6. They can be
classified according to the number of carbon atoms
in the molecule:
• when n=3, the monosaccharide is a triose
• when n=5, the monosaccharide is a pentose
• when n=6, the monosaccharide is a hexose
Disaccharides
Each consists of two monosaccharides joined by a
glycosidic linkage, a covalent bond formed between
two monosaccharides by a dehydration reaction.
• Sucrose - formed from a glucose and a fructose
molecule joined together.
• Lactose - formed from a glucose molecule and a
galactose molecule
• Maltose - consists of two glucose molecules
bonded together.
Polysaccharides
• Polysaccharides, also called complex
carbohydrates, consist of many
monosaccharide molecules joined together.
• They are capable of acting as energy storage or
structural molecules as parts of cell structures.

The molecule has a carbonyl group and multiple
hydroxyl group. Depending on the location of the
carbonyl group, the sugar is either an aldose or a
ketose.
Storage Polysaccharides
Starch
• Storage carbohydrate in plants
• Composed entirely of glucose molecules
• Commonly found in potato tubers, cassava,
carrots, and corn
Glycogen
• Storage carbohydrate in animals
• Accumulates in the liver and muscle cells of
vertebrates
• Made up entirely of glucose units
• Contains more glucose units than starch

Structural Polysaccharides
Cellulose
• Most abundant organic compound on Earth
• Found in plant cell walls
• Functions for support and protection of plant
cells
• Fiber source in human diet
Chitin
• Found in the outer coverings of crustaceans
and insects
• Has protective and supportive functions
• Very rigid and inflexible

Functions of Carbohydrates
• Biofuel
• Food storage
• Antigen
• Hormone
• Source of raw materials for industry
• Substrate for respiration
• Structural support in cells
• Anticoagulant
• Synthesizer of nectar in some flowers

Lipids
• Lipids are a family of organic compounds that
are mostly insoluble in water.
• Composed of fats and oils, lipids are molecules
that yield high energy and have a chemical
composition mainly of carbon, hydrogen, and
Unsaturated and Saturated Fatty Acids
oxygen.
• If there are only single bonds between
• Lipids perform three primary biological
neighboring carbons in the hydrocarbon
functions within the body: the serve as
chain, a fatty acid is said to be saturated. (The
structural components of cell membranes,
thing that fatty acids are saturated with is
function as energy storehouses, function as
hydrogen; in a saturated fat, as many
important signaling molecules.
hydrogen atoms as possible are attached to
• Lipids can be divided into three main classes the carbon skeleton.)
according to differences in structure and
• When the hydrocarbon chain has a double
function.
bond, the fatty acid is said to be
o Fats (triacylglycerols or triglycerides)
unsaturated, as it now has fewer hydrogens.
o Steroids and sterols
If there is just one double bond in a fatty
o Phospholipids
acid, it’s monounsaturated, while if there are
multiple double bonds, it’s polyunsaturated.
Fats
• A fat molecule consists of two kinds of parts: a
Steroids
glycerol backbone and three fatty acid tails.
• Steroids are another class of lipid molecules,
o Glycerol is a small organic molecule with
identifiable by their structure of four fused
three hydroxyl (OH) groups, while a fatty
rings.
acid consists of a long hydrocarbon chain
attached to a carboxyl group.
o A typical fatty acid contains 12–18 carbons,
though some may have as few as 4 or as
many as 36.
 • Cholesterol, the most common steroid, is
mainly synthesized in the liver and is the
precursor to many steroid hormones.
• Also serves as the starting material for other
important molecules in the body, including
vitamin D and bile acids, which aid in the
digestion and absorption of fats from dietary
sources.
• It’s also a key component of cell membranes,
altering their fluidity and dynamics.

Phospholipids
• Specialized lipids called phospholipids are
major components of the plasma membrane.
• Instead of having three fatty acid tails,
however, phospholipids generally have just
two, and the third carbon of the glycerol
backbone is occupied by a modified
phosphate group.
• A phospholipid is an amphipathic molecule,
meaning it has a hydrophobic part and a
hydrophilic part.

Functions of Lipids
In the body
• Storing Energy
• Regulating and signaling
• insulating and protecting
• Aiding Digestion and Increasing
Bioavailability
Food
• High energy source
• smell and taste