Function
Name the three most important types of lipids biologically.
Fats, phospholipids, and steroids.
What elements make up this molecule?
Carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen
What is the difference between saturated fatty acid and unsaturated fatty acid?
No double bonds vs one or more double bonds
How does this macromolecule engage with water?
Lipids interact poorly with water because they are mostly made of hydrocarbon regions and so therefor they are hydrophobic.
What is the crucial steroid in animals?
Cholesterol
What are the processes by which monomers/polymers are built up and broken down?
Built up: Dehydration reaction
Broken down: Hydrolysis
What is the monomer of lipids?
Glycerol and fatty acids
Do lipids include true polymers?
No
Why is this macromolecule needed in the context of the other macromolecule?
Cells would not be able to exist without phospholipids
What could cells not exist without, in regards to lipids. Explain why.
Phospholipids because they are a major part of cell membranes.
What do all lipids have in common?
They mix poorly with water.
What are the different polymers of this macromolecule?
Phospholipids, fats, and steroids
How are steroids distinguished?
A carbon skeleton consisting of four fused rings. Distinguished by the specific chemical groups attached to them
How does a fatty acid molecule join with a glycerol?
How are phospholipids different than a fat molecule?
A fat molecule has three fatty acids attatched to glycerol where a phospholipid has only two.
What does the phospholipid bilayer form?
A boundary between the cell and its external environment
What are examples of lipids?
Waxes and certain pigments
What does a fat consist of?
A glycerol molecule joined to three fatty acids
Where can you receive cholesterol?
Created in liver and provided through diet
Where are the hydrophilic heads and the hydrophobic tail located on a phospholipid?
The hydrophilic heads are located on the outside bilayer and come into contact with water. The hydrophobic tail points to the inside of the bilayer
What does this molecule do inside the cell and inside the organism generally?
Creates barriers between cells and making hormones.
What types of bonds are used in the linking of monomers to polymers?
Ester bonds
How does fatty acid get its name?
The carbon at one end of the skeleton that is part of the carbonyl group
Phospholipids and Eukaryotic cells
What happens when someone’s cholesterol is too high?
The blood in your veins would not flow properly which may turn into atherosclerosis.