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BIO 100 Lecture 5

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21 views18 pages

BIO 100 Lecture 5

Uploaded by

prince Hossain
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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BIO 100

Afreen Zaman Khan

LECTURE 5: MOLECULES OF
LIFE I
Matter
Everything is made up of matter…but
what is matter?

 Matter is anything that has mass and


occupies a space:
 Atoms
 Elements
 Molecules
Atoms and Elements
 Atoms are the smallest unit of
matter that make up elements
 Subatomic particles consist of
electrons, revolving around protons
and neutrons in the nucleus
 Carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen and
oxygen are the most abundant
atoms in living things
 But there are also very important
micronutrient atoms; we only need
these in small amounts, but we
would die without them
 e.g. sodium, iron, chlorine, calcium,
manganese
Characteristics of protons, neutrons,
and electrons
Molecules and Compounds

 Atoms join together to form molecules


 Groups of atoms are tightly held
together by chemical bonds
 Molecules that consist of two or more
different elements are called
compounds
Same atoms bonded together in
different ways make up different
molecules
Carbon
 Carbon is the atomic backbone for all of
biology
 0.1% of Earth’s atmosphere is carbon
dioxide gas
 Carbohydrates, proteins, lipids all have
a carbon backbone (human body is
about 18% carbon by weight)
 All fossil fuels (petrol, coal, gas) are
hydrocarbons
On Earth, carbon is continually recycled
between the atmosphere, plants and animals.
This system is called the carbon cycle.
The cycle involves several key processes:

 photosynthesis
 respiration
 combustion
 decomposition
 fossilisation
Oxygen
 We need oxygen for
respiration
 21% of Earth’s
atmosphere is oxygen
gas
 Component of
carbohydrates, proteins
and lipids
Nitrogen

 78% of Earth’s atmosphere is


nitrogen gas
 Plants get nitrogen from ammonia
made by soil bacteria
 Major constituent of fertilizers
 Nitrogen is the building block of
amino acids and nucleic acids
Hydrogen

 Smallest possible atom


 Hydrogen atoms are one of the basic
building blocks of life (all organic
molecules and water)
 About 75 percent of all the known
elemental matter that exists is
composed of hydrogen
Functions of
elements in our
body
Chemical bond

The force that holds the atoms


together in a molecule is called a
chemical bond
 Covalent bond
 Ionic bond
Covalent bond

Sharing of pairs of electrons is called


covalent bonding. One shared pair of
electron is called a single covalent
bond
Ionic bond
 A bond that is formed by the transfer of
electrons is called an ionic bond. The transfer
leaves one atom with a positive charge and
the other with a negative charge. Atoms that
have a charge, whether positive or negative,
are called ions. These oppositely charged ions
are attracted to each other, forming a
chemical bond.
Compound vs Mixture
Biomolecules…coming up
next!
 A single cell comprises
thousands of kinds of
molecules
 This mixture has been
separated and molecules
identified by biochemists
 Hence we now know what
molecules make up living
cells…biomolecules!

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