Life and Basic Biochemistry

Question 1

What is life?

Answer 1

Essentially, self sustaining and they preserve themselves.

1. Self-organization
2. Autopoietic

Question 2

What is the genome and what is DNA

Answer 2

Genomes are a collection of DNA

DNA stores genetic information necessary to build the parts a cell needs to survive.

Question 3

What are the 2 steps of Central Dogma called

Answer 3

1. Transcription

2. Translation

Question 4

What is phylogenetics?

Answer 4

A field where life is classified by the similarities in their DNA

Question 5

Which are more diverse, Bacteria/Archaea or Eukarya?

Answer 5

Bacteria/Archaea!

Question 6

What are the main branches in the phylogenetic tree of life?

Answer 6

Bacteria, Archaea, Eukarya

Question 7

How are organisms classified?

Answer 7

1. where they get their energy
2. how they acquire their electron for redox reactions
3. if they use oxygen or carbon
4. where they live

Question 8

What is ATP

Answer 8

• Adenosine triphosphate is a common organic compound that provides energy used in biological reactions.
• Hydrolysis of ATP is used as a chemical potential energy to drive other reactions in the cell.

Question 9

What are phototrophs?

Answer 9

Organisms that uses from sunlight make ATP (energy)

Question 10

What are chemotrophs?

Answer 10

Organisms that use redox reactions to make ATP (energy) from performed molecules

Question 11

What are the main types of chemotrophs and what are their terms?

Answer 11

1. Lithotrophs - uses redox reactions of inorganic molecules to make ATP
2. Organotrophs - uses redox reactions of organic molecules to make ATP

Question 12

What are aerobic organisms?

Answer 12

organisms that use oxygen to live

Question 13

What are anaerobic organisms?

Answer 13

Organisms that don’t depend on oxygen to live.

Question 14

What are the types of anaerobs?

Answer 14

1. Obligate - cannot grow in an environment with oxygen
2. Facultative - can grow with or without oxygen
3. Aerotolerant - can grow in an environment w oxygen

Question 15

What are autotrophic organisms?

Answer 15

• Organisms that create complex molecules from inorganic sources.
• Their energy can come from sunlight or inorganic redox reactions

Question 16

What are heterotrophic organisms?

Answer 16

• Can ONLY creates complex molecules from other complex molecules
• All heterotrophs are chemotrophs, and most are organotrophs

Question 17

What are organisms that grow under standard conditions?

Answer 17

Mesophilies

Question 18

What are organisms that grow in high temperatures?

Answer 18

Hyperthermophile (90-115 °C))

Question 19

What are organisms that grow in low temperatures?

Answer 19

Pschorophile (0-12 °C)

Question 20

What are organisms that grow in High pH?

Answer 20

Alkaliphile (8.5 - 12 pH)

Question 21

What are organisms that grow in low pH?

Answer 21

Acidophile (0-4 pH)

Question 22

What are organisms that grow in high pressures?

Answer 22

Barophile (500-1000 atm)

Question 23

What are organisms that grow in high salt concentrations?

Answer 23

Halophile (15-32% NaCl)

Question 24

1.1 Chemistry Review

Question 25

What is the electronegativity difference range in a covalent bond and ionic bond?

Answer 25

Less than 1.7 - covalent | More than 1.7 - ionic

Question 26

Why is water known as the universal solvent?

Answer 26

Water acts as a solvent in biological system because it dissolves most of the compounds and proteins needed for the reaction to occur in the cell (due to its polarity and hydrogen bonding).

Question 27

What are the requirements for a solvent to dissolve?

Answer 27

It must collide with the correct orientation and speed to react (which is more likely to happen in a liquid) It also must break some of the hydrogen bonds

Question 28

What interaction occurs between water and nonpolar molecules?

Answer 28

Hydrophobic interactions. Nonpolar molecules are not attracted to polar water molecules. So, they aggregate in water and orient themselves to minimize their contact with water.

Question 29

What interaction occurs between oppositely charged molecules?

Answer 29

``` Electrostatic interactions (also known as: coulombic forces, ionic pairing, salt-bridge) ```

Question 30

Whats the relative attraction strength of ionic bonds?

Answer 30

hundreds of kcal/mol

Question 31

Whats the relative attraction strength of covalent bonds?

Answer 31

40-160 kcal/mol

Question 32

Whats the relative attraction strength of hydrogen bonds

Answer 32

1-10 kcal/mol

Question 33

Whats the relative attraction strength of van der Waals bonds?

Answer 33

0-10 kcal/mol

Question 34

Whats the water percentage of a cell?

Answer 34

70-90%

Question 35

What are the 3 things to consider if a solute will dissolve in a solvent?

Answer 35

1. Inter/intramolecular interactions within solutes molecules 2. Intermolecular interactions within solvent molecules 3. Intermolecular interactions with solute and solvent molecules

Question 36

What are compounds that will dissolve in water?

Answer 36

Hydrophillic

Question 37

What are compounds that contain both hydrophilic and hydrophobic regions?

Answer 37

Amphipathic

Question 38

What are the carbon skeleton of molecules types?

Answer 38

1. Straight-chain alkanes 2. Branched alkanes 3. Cyclic alkanes