Summary of the Carbohydrates:

Carbohydrates are not only one of the most important food groups in our daily diet, but show an
important role in our body as a macromolecule. Their monomers consist of monosaccharides.
The elements consists of Carbon, Hydrogen, and Oxygen.These molecules are formed through
dehydration synthesis and are broken down by hydrolysis reaction. Dehydration synthesis is
formed through a glycosidic linkage when isomers join together by covalent bonds. During this
process, when water is formed monomers join together. In a hydrolysis reaction, water is used
to split monomers and produces a -H bond and a -OH bond. The functions of carbohydrates are
to act as immediate energy used in cell respiration such as glycogen, used for energy storage
but not as long as Lipids, and to act as structural materials for the cell. The functional groups
are the carbonyl and the hydroxyl group which consist of aldose sugars where the carbonyl
group is located at the end of the molecule and the ketone sugars where the carbonyl group is
located at the center of the molecule. The polymers of carbohydrates are disaccharides and
polysaccharides. Different types of polysaccharides include starch and glycogen which are used
for energy storage. Starch is stored into chloroplasts of plants, can be branched or linear, and
their subunits are in the alpha configuration.Cellulose is stored in cell walls of plants and it is the
most abundant sugar on Earth that is in the beta configuration. In starch the glycosidic linkages
are in the same plane and it is very easy to digest while in cellulose every glucose monomer is
upside down and it is very difficult to digest. Glycogen is branched, in the alpha configuration,
found in the liver of animals and muscle cells, and it is broken down through hydrolysis reaction
to release energy. Chitin is composed into the cell walls of fungi and anthropoid skeletons and
are indigestible to animals. It is also in the beta configuration.

Summary of the Lipids:

One of the macromolecule commonly responsible for fat is Lipid. Their monomers consist of
fatty acids, but they have no true polymers. The fatty acids consists of long carbon, hydrogen
chains that are hydrophobic and nonpolar. Lipids contain carbon and hydrogen in chains of
oxygen called hydrocarbons.Lipids main functions are long term energy storage, insulate and
protect the body, and cellular structure. The many types of Lipids include waxes, steroids,
phospholipids pigments, and fats. Phospholipids are composed of one saturated fatty acid, one
unsaturated fatty acid and glycerol as well as a third fatty acid joined to a hydroxyl and a
phosphate group. Phospholipids make up the boundary of cell and external environment.Their
structure is composed into a double layer where the 'heads' are hydrophilic with a phosphate
group and the 'tails' are hydrophobic and fatty acids. Steroids are lipids composed of carbon
skeleton of a four based rings, vary based on functional groups and its main part is cholesterol
which helps keep animal membrane fluid and flexibility. Cholesterol is also a precursor to sex
hormones and helps keep cell membrane fluid. Fats are composed of a glycerol and a
triglycerol. Fatty acids in a triglyceride are joined together by an ester linkage when dehydration
synthesis occurs. Glycerol is a fatty acid composed of a long chain of hydrocarbons with a
carboxyl group. Fat's hydrocarbon chains are hydrophobic and nonpolar.The most common
types of fat are saturated and unsaturated fats. The difference between them is that an
unsaturated fat has a double bond in the triglycerol which causes it to bend.It is also liquid at
room temperature and examples of saturated fats are olive oil, and cod oil. Saturated fats are

consisted of single bonds between carbon atoms with hydrogen bonds attached and it is solid at
room temperature. Examples of saturated fats are lard and butter.

Summary of Proteins:
Protein is one of the most important macromolecule due to its many functions and unique
structure. Proteins are made up of amino acids each with twenty different kinds. Amino acids
are composed of a central carbon called the alpha carbon. A carboxyl group (-COOH) and an
amino acid group (NH2) are attached to the alpha carbon as well as the hydrogen atom and the
side chain R group The R groups give each amino acid a different chemical property: nonpolar
(hydrophobic), polar(hydrophilic) and acid or base. Proteins contain the elements: Carbon,
Hydrogen, Oxygen, Nitrogen, and Sulfur.The polymers are polypeptides which denature with
changes in ph, salinity, or temperature.Proteins are built through dehydration synthesis and the
carboxyl and the amino group joined together by a peptide bond. One end of the polypeptide is
free (NH2= N terminus) and the other end of the polypeptide is free (-COOH=C terminus)The
repeated N-C-C sequence is the backbone of the polypeptide chain. Proteins act as enzymes to
increase chemical reactions, help build structure, proteins act as carriers and transporters, they
also signal, act as receptors, and defend against foreigners. An example of a protein are
enzymes that act as a catalysts to speed up chemical reactions.They are four levels of a
protein's structure.Chaperonins are protein capsules used to guide the folding process to shelter
from cytoplasmic influences. It allows bonds to form correctly. The primary level is when the

protein is in a linear structure based on the order of the amino acid which is determined through
the DNA sequence. Peptide bonds are also formed at this level. The secondary level is the
folding and coiling of the amino acid chain which are from the hydrogen bonding between R
groups. The folds create an alpha helix or beta pleated sheet.Tertiary level is when other
properties are added to the protein such as ionic bonds which is the transfer of
electrons.Disulfide bridges are added between sulfhydryl groups as well as hydrophobic and
hydrophilic interactions. More hydrogen bonds are added and Van der waals interactions are
included. They are weak interactions between regions of positive and negative charges. During
the quaternary level, same bonds in the tertiary are included in the last level. Multiple subunits
are added and two or more polypeptide bonds join together to make the overall structure of the
protein. Other factors affecting protein's shape include ph,salt concentration, and temperature.

Summary of Nucleic Acids:

Nucleic Acids are made up of nucleotides. Their structure consists of a phosphate group,
pentose sugar, (deoxyribose/ribose) and a nitrogen base. The two families of nitrogen bases are
pyrimidines and purines. Purines have double ring Nitrogen base with Adenine and Guanine in
this family. Pyrimidines have single ring Nitrogen base and it includes Cytosine, Thymine, and
Uracil. The elements of nucleic acids are Carbon, Hydrogen, Oxygen, Nitrogen, and
Phosphorus. The main function of nucleic acids is to store hereditary information, store and
transmit genetic information, and it is the primary storage molecules for all living things. Nucleic
Acids are bonded through a phosphodiester linkage and their polymers are polynucleotides.The

most common examples are DNA and RNA. DNA consists of the all the nitrogen bases except
Uracil with Adenine paired with Thymine and Guanine paired with Cytosine.The bases are
located inside the DNA molecule and the bases of one strand are bonded to its paired base
using hydrogen bonds. It is formed around a double helix and it has anti parallel arrangement.
Anti-parallel arrangement is when one strand runs in the opposite direction. It's pentose sugar is
deoxyribose sugar and it has phosphate as a backbone with the bases in the middle.DNA is
built in a 5' to 3' direction. RNA is single stranded, made from DNA, and contains Uracil instead
of Thymine.

Reflection: One of the most important things I learned from carbohydrates is how they are
made during the dehydration reaction. During dehydration reaction, water is formed when
monosaccharides are joined together as well as the hydrolysis reaction when the monomers are
broken apart. What I thought was fascinating was the structure of starch and chitin. Every
monomer of the starch were in the same plane during glycosidic linkage while in the chitin
structure every monomer is flipped upside down which is what makes chitin indigestible.
Carbohydrates have a shorter energy storage, but Lipids have long term energy storage. Lipids
are composed of fatty acids that are hydrophobic and nonpolar. What I thought was interesting
was the difference between saturated fat and unsaturated fats. The triacylglycerol of a
saturated fat is composed of single bonds and it is solid at room temperature while the structure
of a unsaturated fats consists of double bonds that causes the fatty acid to bend and it is liquid
at room temperature. I am more interesting in leading the structure of the macromolecules and
seeing the structures of the functional groups such as carboxyl, carbonyl and hydroxyl groups.
My weakness in this unit is alpha and beta configuration of carbohydrates, and the difference
between branches and unbranded. Other weaknesses include four levels of the protein
structure and the disaccharides and polysaccharides of carbohydrates. The standards of this
unit include: 1.C.1:b,1.D.1:a1-5, 1.D.2:a1-2,b1-2,2.A.2:e