CARBOHYDRATES
What is the monomer of carbohydrates?
Monosaccharides
Are lipids considered polymers? Why or why not?
No, because they are not made of repeating identical monomers.
What is the monomer of proteins?
Amino Acids
What is the main component of plant cell walls?
Cellulose
Which macromolecule is the main source of energy for cells?
Carbohydrates
What type of bond links two monosaccharides together?
Glycosidic linkage (formed by dehydration reaction)
What type of reaction links glycerol to fatty acids in a triglyceride?
Dehydration reaction (forms ester linkages).
What type of bond links amino acids together?
Peptide Bond
__________ is best known as a STRUCTURAL polypetide.
Chitin
Which macromolecule makes up enzymes, and what do enzymes do?
Proteins; they speed up chemical reactions by lowering activation energy.
_______ is a storage polysaccharide of plants, while __________ is a storage polysaccharide of animals.
STARCH
GLYCOGEN
Compare saturated vs unsaturated fats in terms of structure.
Saturated: no double bonds, straight chains, solid at room temp
Unsaturated: double bonds, bent chains, liquid at room temp
Name the four levels of protein structure.
Primary (amino acid sequence), Secondary (alpha helices & beta sheets), Tertiary (overall 3D folding), Quaternary (multiple polypeptide subunits).
What stage is responsible for the interactions of R groups?
Tertiary stage
Define dehydration reactions VS hydrolysis reactions?
Dehydration links monomers together by removing water; hydrolysis breaks polymers apart by adding water.
Draw the structural difference between alpha and beta glucose.
Alpha = OH on C1 below plane; Beta = OH on C1 above plane.
Draw a phospholipid and label its hydrophilic head and hydrophobic tails.
Head = phosphate group (polar, hydrophilic); tails = fatty acids (nonpolar, hydrophobic)
What happens to a protein when it denatures?
It loses its shape + function
What are the four major classes of macromolecules?
Carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, nucleic acids
Draw a dehydration reaction linking two monomers of your choice.
Correct diagram shows removal of H₂O and formation of covalent bond.
Why can humans digest starch but not cellulose, even though both are made of glucose monomers?
Humans have enzymes that hydrolyze α-1,4 linkages in starch, but lack enzymes to hydrolyze β-1,4 linkages in cellulose.
Explain why phospholipids spontaneously form bilayers in water.
Hydrophilic heads interact with water, hydrophobic tails cluster inward to avoid water — amphipathic structure drives bilayer formation.
What is the polymer of amino acids?
Polypeptide
What element is the building block of life?
Carbon
Which functional group acts as an acid?
Carboxyl