Consider the structure and function of each of these four biological macromolecu
ID: 89132 • Letter: C
Question
Consider the structure and function of each of these four biological macromolecules. How does the structure of each molecule affect its function? For example, in complex carbohydrates, why would long chains of glucose be more effective for energy storage than single glucose molecules? How do the four levels of protein structure affect the shape of enzymes and why is this important for enzyme function? Explain the "lock and key" model of enzyme function using the terms substrate, active site, and product.
Explanation / Answer
The four biological macromolecules are-carbohydrates, proteins, and nucleic acids and lipids.
In carbohydrates the repeated units are small molecules called monomers, these are connected by covalent bonds that form through the loss of a water molecule called dehydration.In Carbohydrates the simplest sugar is monosaccharides, disaccharides are two sugars, which consist of two monosaccharides (join with a glycosidic linkage) and Polysaccharides are polymers of many monosaccharides.
Carbohydrates serve as fuel and a source of carbon and particularly glucose monosaccharides, are a major fuel for cellular work.Example of monosaccharides are glucose,Disaccharides sucrose, maltose Polysaccharides-Starch amd glycogen.
The reason of the In the long chains of glucose be more effective for energy storage than single glucose moleculesbecause in human body, glucose is stored in longer chains of a carbohydrate known as glycogen or glycogen is multibranched polysaccaharides and made up of 1,4 linked alpha-glucose molecules. Longer chains enable the molecule to store more energy because it is released whenever bonds are broken.Wwhen these bonds break and release the energy in the form of ATP.
Proteins consists of one or more polypeptides folded and form a specific structure.Amino acids are the monomers from which proteins are constructed.Amino acids are joined together another amino acids by a covalent bond is called a peptide bond.
The center of an amino acid is an asymmetric carbon atom called the alpha carbon which are attached with the four components i.e a hydrogen group, A carboxyl group, an amino group and a variable R group.This R groups belongs to the 20 different amino acids and by the Repeating the process over and over creates a polypeptide chain form the different proteins.Proteins are found in different structure i e primary, secondary, and tertiary structures.These structures determine the shape and function of the enzyme via chemical electronegativity and polarity.
Primary structure (amino acid sequence),Secondary structure ( -helix and -pleated sheet structures),Tertiary structure( interactions between R groups) and Quarternary structures ( arises when two or more polypeptides join to form a protein).