Carbon Based Compounds
Beginning Organic Chemistry
The Importance of Carbon
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Carbon has four valence electrons
These four electrons have the ability to form four
covalent bonds
Carbon consistently bonds with hydrogen, oxygen,
phosphorus, sulfur and nitrogen.
These molecules make up the building blocks of
living things. . .remember CHNOPS!
Carbon Compounds
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Carbon compounds are also known as organic
molecules or organic compounds.
There are four types of organic compounds
 Carbohydrates
 Proteins
 Lipids
 Nucleic
Acids
Macromolecules
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Macromolecules are GIANT MOLECULES
made of many smaller molecules
Macromolecules are also called polymers.
 A polymer is when monomers join
together
 A monomer is the building block of
polymers sometimes referred to as small
sub-units.
 Monomers
can be formed by many
different types of molecules or they can be
formed by identical molecules joining
together.
Carbohydrates
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Carbohydrates are made of the elements carbon,
hydrogen, and oxygen in a ration of 1:2:1
 For
every one carbon atom there are 2 hydrogen and
1 oxygen
Carbohydrates cont’d
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A carbohydrate functions as the main source of
energy for living things.
 In
animals it is glucose
 In plants its cellulose
Carbohydrate cont’d
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Carbohydrates can be used for structures in living
things.
 In
plants the cellulose allows plants to be tough, flexible
and rigid.
 In animals they are formed from the breakdown of your
food and are found in the structure of muscles to supply
immediate energy to the cell.
Carbohydrate cont’d
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Single carbohydrates or sugars are called
monosaccharides
Polysacharrides are many single sugars combined.
Polysaccharides store excess sugar in glycogen in
animals.
Lipids
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Lipids are groups of molecules that are not soluble
in water.
They make fats, oils, and waxes.
Lipids store energy
They are used to help waterproofing
Lipids include steroids
Lipids cont’d
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Lipids are formed when glycerol and fatty acids
combine
 The
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monomer of a lipid is a fatty acid
Two type of Lipids
 Saturated
fat that contain the maximum number of
hydrogen bonds
 Unsaturated fats are fats that have at least one carbon
double bond
Lipids
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Lipids are found in various places in the body
 Cell
membranes
 Lining of organs
 Under the skin
 Part of the skin
Nucleic Acids
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Nucleic acids are macromolecules that contain
hydrogen, nitrogen, carbon, and phosphorus.
They are made from monomers known as
nucleotides.
Nucleic acids function to store and transmit genetic
information.
There are two main types of nucleic acids:
 Deoxyribonucleic
acid (DNA)
 Ribonucleic acid (RNA)
Nucleic acids cont’d
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The four nucleotides that are monomers of nucleic
acids are: adenine, thymine, guanine, and cytosine.
DNA has a sugar and phosphate backbone with the
nucleotides connecting each strand with a hydrogen
bond to the corresponding nucleotide on the
opposite side.
DNA is found naturally in a state known as the
double helix.
Nucleic acids cont’d
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DNA is the instructions that control the production of
proteins within the cell.
RNA is a single strand of sugar, phosphate
backbone, with base pairs of uracil, adenine,
guanine and cytosine.
RNA reads the genes found in DNA to create
proteins.
Proteins
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Proteins are large molecules that consist of the
elements carbon, hydrogen, and nitrogen.
Amino acids build protein molecules through a
process called protein synthesis.
Amino acids are formed through the instructions
from DNA, being translated into RNA, which in turn
codes for a specific amino acid.
Proteins cont’d
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Proteins form from the amino acids changing their R group.
The R group determines how the protein will fold.
Primary structure of a protein forms through chains of amino
acids.
Secondary structure of a protein then twist into a helical
shape similar to DNA.
Tertiary structure folds and continue to turn.
Quarternary structure forms when multiple polypeptide
chains (amino acid chains) combine and intertwine.
Proteins cont’d
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Proteins have variety of function within cells, the
shape is what determines the function.
Proteins function to:
 Provide
structure
 Regulate cell processes
 Speed up chemical reactions
 Help with transport of molecules within the cell
membrane.
Organic Molecule Video