MOLECULES, TRANSPORT AND HEALTH

1A: CHEMISTRY FOR BIOLOGISTS

1A: 2: CARBOHYDRATES 1: MONOSACCHARIDES AND DISACCHARIDES
WHAT ARE ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
CONCEPTS TO TEST a) Define organic compounds
 Compounds that contain carbon atoms
NB: They also contain atoms of hydrogen, oxygen and less frequently nitrogen,
sulfur and phosphorus

b) Name THREE examples of organic compounds

 Carbohydrates
 Lipids
 Proteins

c) State TWO importance of organic compounds in living organisms

 Important in the structure of living organisms / make up structures e.g.
cellulose in cell walls, lipids in cell membrane, proteins in cell membrane
etc.
 Important in the function of living organisms / involved in different
functions e.g. carbohydrates to provide energy, lipids for insulation and to
provide energy, proteins for repair and growth of cells

d) Name the 3-D structure / shape formed when 4-carbon atoms bond
covalently. Fig A page 8
 Tetrahedral
NB: This means carbon compounds can be rings, branched or any number of 3D
shapes

e) Distinguish between “monomers” and “polymers”

f) Outline the importance of the ability of carbon to make “macromolecules /

polymers” through catenation
 It is the basis of all biological molecules and provides:
i. The great variety / variations in living organisms
ii. The great complexity found in living organisms
CARBOHYDRATES
CONCEPTS TO TEST a) State the functions of carbohydrates
- Some are usable energy sources / currency in cells (monosaccharides
and disaccharides)
- Some store energy (starch in plants and glycogen in animals and fungi)
- Some are important part of the cell wall (cellulose in plants, component
of chitin in fungi and component of peptidoglycan in bacteria)

b) Name the THREE elements found in carbohydrates

- Carbon
- Hydrogen
- Oxygen

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 c) Name the THREE main groups of carbohydrates
- Monosaccharides
- Disaccharides
- Polysaccharides
CHECKPOINT  Question 1 Page 10:

MONOSACCHARIDES: THE SIMPLE SUGARS

CONCEPTS TO TEST a) Write the general formula of monosaccharides
- CnH2nOn where n can be 3, 5 or 6

b) Write the formula of a triose sugar and state its importance in living
organisms
- C3H6O3
- During aerobic respiration when glucose molecule is broken down
into two molecules in the mitochondria

c) Write the formula of a pentose sugar, name TWO examples of

pentose sugar and state the biological molecules where each is found
in living organisms.
- C5H10O5
- Ribose sugars in RNA and Deoxyribose sugars in DNA

d) Write the formula of a hexose sugar, name the THREE examples of

hexose sugar
- C6H12O6
- Glucose, Fructose and Galactose

e) State at least FIVE properties (both chemical and physical properties) of

hexose sugars.
- They are reducing sugars i.e. reduce (donate electrons to) the copper (ii)
ions in Benedict’s reagent to copper (i) ions
- They are sweet tasting
- They are crystallisable / can form crystals
- They are soluble in water
- Several single units condense to form polymers

f) Name the TWO isomers of glucose

- Alpha glucose
- Beta glucose

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 g) State the similarities between the two isomers
- They both contain oxygen, hydrogen and carbon atoms
- They both have 6 carbon atoms ,12 hydrogen atoms and 6 oxygen
atoms / have same molecular formula C6H12O6
- Both have –OH groups / hydroxyl groups bonded to carbon 1, carbon 2,
carbon 3 and carbon 4
- All the atoms in their structure are covalently bonded
NB: Monosaccharides contain covalent bonds only in their structure

h) Distinguish between the TWO isomers of glucose using their structures. Fig
D page 9
- Alpha glucose has –OH / hydroxyl groups bonded to carbon 1 and
carbon 4 on the same side while beta glucose has the –OH / hydroxyl
groups bonded to carbon 1 and carbon 4 alternating

NB: Correctly drawn diagrams can be used to illustrate the differences

LEARNING TIP  The second learning tip page 10

DID YOU KNOW  Page 9

DISACCHARIDES: THE DOUBLE SUGARS
SUBJECT  TO KNOW HOW MONOSACCHARIDES (GLUCOSE, FRUCTOSE AND
SPECIFICATION GALACTOSE) JOIN TOGETHER TO FORM DISACCHARIDES (MALTOSE,
OBJECTIVE 1.4 SUCROSE AND LACTOSE) THROUGH CONDENSATION REACTIONS
FORMING GLYCOSIDIC BONDS, AND HOW THESE CAN BE SPLIT
THROUGH HYDROLYSIS REACTIONS
CONCEPTS TO TEST a) Illustrate the condensation / polymerization and hydrolysis reactions
between two alpha-glucose isomers. Fig A page 11

b) Name the bond formed during the condensation reaction between two
monosaccharides
- glycosidic bond
c) Describe how a glycosidic bond is formed during condensation
- By the removal of a hydrogen atom from one monomer and a hydroxyl
group from another monomer to form water molecule that is lost.

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 d) Outline that glycosidic bond is a type of covalent bond found between any
two monosaccharides (monomers) and not within the monosaccharide
structures.
NB: The other covalent bonds found within the monosaccharide structures are not
glycosidic
LEARNING TIP  Page 11

CHECKPOINT  Page 10: Question 2

EXAM PRACTICE  Question 3 (a) & 4 (a) Page 24:

EDEXCEL EXAM  JUNE 2023 UNIT 1 (WBI11) QUESTION 3 (a) (i) 1 MARK

 JANUARY 2022 UNIT 1 (WBI11) QUESTION 1 (b) (ii) 1 MARK

 OCTOBER 2019 UNIT 1 (WBI11) QUESTION 4 (a) (ii) 1 MARK

 JUNE 2010 UNIT 1 (6BIO4) QUESTION 1 (a) 1 MARK

CONCEPTS TO TEST e) Understand the reason behind naming and writing the 1,4-glycosidic bond
in disaccharides
- The oxygen atom is covalently bonded to carbon 1 of one monomer and
carbon 4 of the other monomer
NB: Glycosidic is a type of covalent bond

f) Write the chemical equation for the reaction that occurs between TWO
monomers during condensation reaction
i. Between hexose and hexose sugars
- C6H12O6 + C6H12O6  C12H22O11 + H2O

ii. Between hexose and pentose sugar

- C6H12O6 + C5H10O5  C11H20O10 + H2O

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 iii. Between pentose and pentose sugar
- C5H10O5 + C5H10O5  C10H18O9 + H2O

iv. Between hexose and triose sugar

- C6H12O6 + C3H6O3  C9H16O8 + H2O

v. Between pentose and triose sugar

- C5H10O5 + C3H6O3  C8H14O7 + H2O

vi. Between triose and triose sugar

- C3H6O3 + C3H6O3  C6H10O5 + H2O
EDEXCEL EXAM  JUNE 2023 UNIT 1 (WBI11) QUESTION 3 (a) (ii) 2 MARKS

CONCEPTS TO TEST J) Understand that monosaccharides differ with disaccharides in terms

of:
- Solubility in solvents: monosaccharides are more soluble because of
fewer covalent bonds that need to be broken while disaccharides
have more covalent bonds (twice the number of a monosaccharide)
plus glycosidic to be broken
- Size and / or shape: monosaccharides are smaller in size hence
dissolves faster
- Monosaccharides do not possess glycosidic bonds within their
structure because this is an inter-monomer covalent bond

K) Use table A (page 9) to understand the monosaccharides that make up each

disaccharide and where they are found

EDEXCEL EXAM  JUNE 2022 UNIT 1 (WBI11) QUESTION 1 5 MARKS

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 JANUARY 2022 UNIT 1 (WBI11) QUESTION 1 (b) (i) 4 MARKS

 OCTOBER 2021 UNIT 1 (WBI11) QUESTION 4 (a) (i) 1 MARK

 JANUARY 2020 UNIT 1 (WBI11) QUESTION 3 (a) (ii) 1 MARK

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 OCTOBER 2019 UNIT 4 (WBIO4) QUESTION 1 (a) (i) 1 MARK

 OCTOBER 2019 UNIT 1 (WBI11) QUESTION 4 (a) (i) 1 MARK

 JUNE 2019 UNIT 1 (WBIO1) QUESTION 1 (a) (i) 1 MARK

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CONCEPTS TO TEST L) Outline that the condensation and the hydrolysis process of disaccharides
are catalyzed by enzymes carbohydrases.
- Enzyme maltase involved in maltose reactions
- Enzyme sucrase involved in sucrose reactions
- Enzyme lactase involved in lactose reactions
EXAM PRACTICE  Question 4 (c) Page 24:

EDEXCEL EXAM  JANUARY 2020 UNIT 1 (WBI11) QUESTION 3 (a) (i) 1 MARK

CONCEPTS TO TEST m) State at least FIVE properties of disaccharides

- Maltose and lactose are reducing sugars EXCEPT sucrose which is a non-
reducing sugar
- They are sweet tasting
- They are crystallisable
- They are soluble in water
- They can be hydrolyzed into constituent monosaccharides
LEARNING TIP  Page 10

EDEXCEL EXAM  JUNE 2023 UNIT 1 (WBI11) QUESTION 3 (c) (i), (ii) & (iii) 3 MARKS

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  OCTOBER 2019 UNIT 1 (WBI11) QUESTION 4 (a) (iii) 2 MARKS

1A: 3: CARBOHYDRATES 2: POLYSACCHARIDES

LEARNING  TO KNOW HOW MONOSACCHARIDES (GLUCOSE, FRUCTOSE AND
SPECIFICATION GALACTOSE) JOIN TOGETHER TO FORM POLYSACCHARIDES THROUGH
OBJECTIVE 1.4 CONDENSATION REACTIONS FORMING GLYCOSIDIC BONDS, AND
HOW THESE CAN BE SPLIT THROUGH HYDROLYSIS REACTIONS.
CONCEPTS TO TEST a) Outline that polysaccharides are formed when three or more
monosaccharides undergo condensation reaction and the reverse hydrolysis
reaction also occurs.
b) Outline at least FOUR properties of polysaccharides
- They are not / non sugars
- They are non-crystallisable
- They are slightly soluble in water
- They can be hydrolysed into constituent monomers

c) Distinguish between “oligosaccharides” and “true polysaccharides”.

- Oligosaccharides are molecules with between 3 and 10 sugar units while
true polysaccharides contain 11 or more sugar units

d) Name the THREE common examples of polysaccharides

- Starch in plants / amyloplast
- Glycogen in animals (liver cells/hepatocytes) and fungi
- Cellulose in plant cell walls

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 e) Name TWO processes in living organisms during which hydrolysis of
polysaccharides occur naturally
- Digestion in the gut e.g. when digesting starch in the mouth by
catalyzing action of salivary amylase enzyme
- In the liver cells when stored carbohydrates (glycogen) are hydrogen by
hormone glucagon into glucose
LEARNING TIP  Page 11
EDEXCEL EXAM  OCTOBER 2022 UNIT 4 (WBI14) QUESTION 2 (b) (i) & (ii) 2 MARKS
Lysozyme is an enzyme that damages the cell walls of some bacteria.
The diagram below shows the action of lysozyme on part of a molecule present
in the cell walls of some bacteria

 JANUARY 2020 UNIT 4 (WBI14) QUESTION 2 (b) 1 MARK : Carbon polymer

related question

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 CARBOHYDRATES AND ENERGY
LEARNING  TO BE ABLE TO RELATE THE STRUCTURES OF MONOSACCHARIDES,
SPECIFICATION DISACCHARIDES AND POLYSACCHARIDES TO THEIR ROLES IN
OBJECTIVE 1.2 (ii) PROVIDING AND STORING ENERGY
MONOSACCHARIDES AND DISACCHARIDES
EXAM HINT  Page 11

CONCEPTS TO TEST a) Outline the importance of energy in living organisms

- To sustain metabolic processes such as : cell division, nerve impulse
transmission, muscle contraction and relaxation, cell division etc.

b) Name the molecule that supplies energy in living cells when hydrolysed
- ATP (Adenosine Triphosphate)

c) State reasons why foods containing monosaccharides and disaccharides are

a good source of relatively instant energy
- Glucose is easily absorbed and assimilated/used directly / readily in the
cells
- The other two monosaccharides and the disaccharides are also easily
absorbed but not readily used in cells however they are rapidly
converted to glucose

d) State TWO reasons why foods containing monosaccharides and

disaccharides cannot be used to store energy
- They are physically active (can move within the cells for
monosaccharides only) hence interfere with the other cell functions
- They are chemically active (have osmotic effect for both
monosaccharides and disaccharides) hence interfere with other cell
functions
NB: They are very soluble in water hence affect the water potential within a cell and
cause osmotic water movements

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CHECKPOINT  Page 13: Question 1

POLYSACCHARIDES
SPECIFICATION  TO KNOW THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN MONOSACCHARIDES,
LEARNING DISACCHARIDES AND POLYSACCHARIDES, INCLUDING GLYCOGEN
OBJECTIVE 1.2 (i) AND STARCH (AMYLOSE AND AMYLOPECTIN)
CONCEPTS TO TEST a) Reasons why polysaccharides are not used to provide immediate energy
- They are not easily absorbed and readily used in cells

b) State FOUR reasons why the structure of polysaccharides makes them ideal
as energy storage molecules within a cell
- They can form very compact molecules which take up little space in the
cells e.g. coiled amylose molecule
- They are physically (do not move within cells) inactive hence do not
interfere with the other cell functions
- They are not very soluble in water hence have almost no effect on the
water potential within a cell and can cause no osmotic water
movements i.e. chemically inactive
- They consist of numerous monomers such that when they are
hydrolysed they release a lot of glucose / energy
EXAM HINT  Page 12
EDEXCEL EXAMS  JANUARY 2023 UNIT 1 (WBI11) QUESTION 1 (b) 3 MARKS

 JUNE 2019 UNIT 1 (WBIO1) QUESTION 1 (c) & (d) 3 MARKS

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  JUNE 2010 UNIT 2 (6BIO2) QUESTION 5 4 MARKS

STARCH
CONCEPTS TO TEST a) State the importance / function of starch
- It is an energy store in plant
EXAM PRACTICE  Question 4 (b) Page 24

CONCEPTS TO TEST b) Describe the properties and structure of starch

- It is insoluble / slightly soluble / not very soluble in water
- It is a compact molecule
- It is physically and chemically inactive
- It consists of numerous alpha glucose monomers only
- It is a mixture of two molecules / polymers (amylose and amylopectin)
and therefore consists of both 1,4 and 1,6-gycosidic bonds
EXAM PRACTICE  Question 3 (b) Page 24:

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EDEXCEL EXAMS  JANUARY 2022 UNIT 1 (WBI11) QUESTION 1 (a) 1 MARK

 JUNE 2019 UNIT 1 (WBIO1) QUESTION 1 (a) (ii) 1 MARKS

 JUNE 2010 UNIT 1 (6BIO) QUESTION 1 (b) & (c) 2 MARKS

CONCEPTS TO TEST c) Explain the structural similarity and difference between amylose and
amylopectin. Fig D page 12
Similarities
- They are both made of alpha glucose monomers only
- They both contain 1,4-glycosidic bonds
- They both consist of numerous monomers / both are polymers

Difference
- Amylose consists of 1,4-glycosidic bonds while amylopectin consists of
both 1,4 and 1,6-glycosidic bonds
- Amylose is linear/ straight chained and coiled while amylopectin is not
coiled i.e. it’s branched

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EDEXCEL EXAMS  2019 UNIT 1 (WBI11) QUESTION 4 (b) 3 MARKS

 OCTOBER 2019 UNIT 4 (WB14) QUESTION 1 (a) (iii) 1 MARK

 JUNE 2010 UNIT 2 (6BIO2) QUESTION 5 1 MARK

CONCEPTS TO TEST d) State TWO importance of carbohydrate foods (like rice & pasta) during sport
or hard physical work
- Amylopectin because is branched (has terminal sugars) has increased
surface area for the action of enzyme amylase hence releases glucose
rapidly when hydrolysed. Important when energy is required instantly
e.g sprinting

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 - Amylose because is straight chained has reduced surface area for the
action of enzyme amylase hence releases glucose slowly when
hydroysed. Important when energy is required over a long period of
time e.g marathon
EDEXCEL EXAMS  JUNE 2019 UNIT 1 (WBIO1) QUESTION 1 (d) 5 MARKS

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 JUNE 2010 UNIT 2 (6BIO2) QUESTION 5 5 MARKS

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 GLYCOGEN
CONCEPTS TO TEST a) Outline that glycogen is the only carbohydrate energy stored in animals;
and is also an important storage carbohydrate in fungi

b) Describe how glycogen is formed from glucose

- Formation of 1,4 and 1,6 – glycosidic bonds through condensation
reactions between alpha glucose monomers

c) Compare and contrast the structure of glucose and glycogen

- Both have carbon, oxygen and hydrogen atoms only
- Both have covalent bonds joining the atoms in their structures
- Glycogen is composed of alpha glucose monomers only

GLUCOSE GLYCOGEN
- Has fewer carbon, oxygen - Has more carbon, oxygen
and hydrogen atoms and hydrogen atoms
- Doesn’t have glycosidic - Has 1,4 – and 1,6 –
bond within its structure glycosidic bonds within its
structure
- It’s a monosaccharide - It’s a polysaccharide
(properties of monosaccharides can be (properties of polysaccharides can be
considered ) considered )
EDEXCEL EXAMS  OCTOBER 2022 UNIT 1 (WBI11) QUESTION 7 (d) 3 MARKS

 JUNE 2021 UNIT 4 (WBI14) QUESTION 6 (a) 4 MARKS

 JANUARY 2018 UNIT 1 (WBIO1) QUESTION 8 (a) 3 MARKS

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CONCEPTS TO TEST d) Identify the structural similarities and differences between glycogen and
starch (Fig f page 13)
Similarities
- They are both made of alpha glucose monomers only
- They both contain 1,4-glycosidic bonds with amylopectin (in starch) and
glycogen containing 1,6-gycosidic bonds / are both branched / both
have terminal sugars
- They both consist of numerous monomers

Differences
- Starch is a mixture of two molecules while glycogen is a single molecule
- Compared to amylopectin (in starch) , glycogen has more 1,6-glycosidic
bonds / is more branched / has more terminal sugars
NB: Another difference though not structural : starch is stored in plant
cells/amyloplasts while glycogen is stored in animal cells/liver cells / hepatocytes
and fungi

e) Outline why glycogen is an ideal source of glucose for animals which require
rapid energy release.
- Since glycogen is more branched / has more terminal sugars (than
amylopectin), it is hydrolysed rapidily to release energy even more
readily during cellular respiration that is able to instantly meet the
energy demands of animals that usually have very high metabolic
demands e.g. very mobile
EXAM HINT  Page 13

DID YOU KNOW  Page 13

CHECKPOINT  Page 13: Question 2

EXAM PRACTICE  Page 24: Question 3 (c) & 4 (d)

EDEXCEL EXAMS  JANUARY 2018 UNIT 1 (WBIO1) QUESTION 8 (b) 2 MARKS

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 JANUARY 2012 UNIT 1(6BIO1) QUESTION 4 (a) 4 MARKS

 JANUARY 2012 UNIT 1(6BIO1) QUESTION 4 (b) (ii) 3 MARKS

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