Big Ideas of Mol Bio
What is the study of Molecular Biology?
The attempt to understand biological phenomena in molecular terms
Study of the molecular aspects of life
Can elements be broken down?
No
What are atoms the basis of? What makes up an atom?
Atoms are the smallest unit of matter and make up elements
Protons, neutrons, electrons
What is a covalent bond?
A sharing of electrons between 2 atoms
Valence electrons to be specific
What is a chemical reaction?
The making and breaking of bonds
Changes in composition of matter
What are shared features among cells?
Outer membrane to regulate passage in and out of the cell
Genetic information (typically in the form of DNA)
What is matter? What is it made of?
Anything that takes up space and has mass
Made of elements
What is the charge of an electron?
Electrons have a negative charge.
What are hydrogen bonds. Are these strong or weak chemical bonds?
Hydrogen bonds are when hydrogen atoms covalently bond to an electronegative atom which is attracted to another electronegative atom. These are weak interactions
What are the terms on the left-hand side of a chemical reaction?
Reactants
Explain the difference between reductionism and systems biology.
Reductionism is studying complex system by breaking them into simpler components that are more manageable to study
Systems biology constructs models to study the dynamic behavior of whole biological systems
What are the 4 main essential elements of life?
Carbon, oxygen, hydrogen, and nitrogen
Which atoms make up the atomic nucleus? What are their charges?
Protons (positive) and neutrons (neutral)
What makes a molecule and a compound different? Draw the Lewis dot structure for a molecule and a compound. Think of hydrogen and water as good example.
Molecules are the same kind of atom and compounds are combinations of different kinds of atoms.
H:H vs H:O:H for : above and below O
What are the terms on the right-hand side of a chemical reaction? What are the numbers in front of them called?
Products
Coefficients
How are positive and negative feedback similar and different?
Both involve a product that regulates the very process it comes from
Product accumulation slows the process in negative and speeds up the production in positive
Name a couple of the essential elements of life that make up the other 4%. What are trace elements?
Phosphorous, sulfur, calcium, potassium, and a few others
Elements found/required in minute quantities. Iron as an example
What is an isotope? What do isotopes have in comparison to a normal element?
All atoms of an element have the same number of protons, but an atom with a differing number of neutrons is an isotope
Having an increased/decreased number of neutrons leads to in increased/decreased mass
What is an ionic bond? Explain the types and roles of ions?
An ionic bond involves the unequal sharing of electrons between atoms resulting in a transfer.
Ions are oppositely charged atoms that form a molecule.
The cation is the positive charge, and the anion is the negative charge.
What does it mean for a reaction to be at a chemical equilibrium? Are reactions still occurring?
There is a balance between the forward and reverse reactions that offset each other
However, reactions are still occurring because the concentrations are not necessarily equal - a ratio has just been established.
What are the 7 characteristics of life?
Order, environmental response, reproduction, growth and development, regulation, homeostasis, and energy processing
What is a compound? What is the relationship involved with compounds? Name an example of a compound.
Compounds consist of two or more different elements combined in a fixed ratio. NaCl is table salt with a 1:1 ratio
Explain shells and orbitals.
An electron orbital is the 3D space within an electron shell where an electron is found 90% if the time. Each shell is composed of a particular number of orbitals in which each can contain two electrons. Reactivity arises when there is an unpaired electron in a orbital of a shell, making the atom more likely to interact with other atoms to complete its shells
Explain the role of electronegativity and Van der Waals Interactions. Give an example of Van der Waals Interactions at play.
Electronegativity is the attraction of a particular kind of atom for electrons. The higher the electronegativity, the more easily a molecule attracts electrons
Van der Waals Interactions occur due to positive and negative charges, allowing molecules to stick to one another. This is because electrons are not always symmetrically distributed in molecules. This is why a gecko can walk up a wall.
Balance the following chemical reactions:
P4O10 + H2O --> H3PO4
SiCl4 + H2O → H4SiO4 + HCl
P4O10 + 6H2O --> 4H3PO4
SiCl4 + 4H2O → H4SiO4 + 4HCl