Structure of Life
Elements of Life
90 Natural
occurring
elements, 25
essential
 96% of the mass
of a human is
made up of C, O,
H, N

Molecules of Life

Molecule: a group of
atoms held together
by covalent bonds
Example: H2O
25 essential elements
Page 146
Picture: a ferritin
homolog that binds
and protects DNA
Water



Most important
compound in living
organisms.
It serves as a
transport of materials,
and as a reservoir for
process to occur.
It has several unique
properties
Polar, resists
temperature change,
water expands when it
freezes
Proteins
Provide structure for tissue and organs
and carry out cell metabolism.
 Metabolism: all the chemical reactions
that occur within an organism.
 The basic building blocks are amino
acids (a.a.)
A structural building block of many
organism

Protein Cont.


Important for
contraction of muscle
tissue, transporting
oxygen in the blood
stream, providing
immunity, regulation
of proteins, and
carrying out reactions.
Example: Enzyme
Enzyme
Carbohydrates
 Used
by cells to store and release
energy
 Organic-has carbon
 An organic compound composed of
C, H, and O with a ratio of 2H:1O:1C
 Different types: monosaccharide,
disaccharide, polysaccharide
Carbohydrate
Lipids
Cells use lipids for
energy storage,
insulation, and
protective
coatings.
 Major components
of the membrane
that surround all
living cells
 Organic
coumpound

Nucleic Acids
A complex
macromolecule
that stores cellular
information in the
form of a code
 smaller subunits
are nucleotides

Explain
“With
the cell, Biology
discovered its atom.”
 Atom
is the basis for the element.
Just like the cell is the basis for
biology.
 Cells are the basic unit for Biotic
organism.
Technology
1.
Light microscope
Simple light
microscope,
contained one lens
and used natural
light to view objects
* Similar to
dissecting
microscopes
Technology Cont.
Compound
Microscope
 Use a series of
lenses to magnify
objects in steps
(magnify 1500X)
 Uses artificial light

Images: Meiosis
Image: Earthworm
Technology Cont.
3. Electron
Microscope
 Use a beam of
highly energetic eto examine objects
on a very fine scale
(instead of light)
Electron Microscope Cont.
Image: Mosquito
Cont.
The compound
microscope can
magnify up to
1500X
 The electron
microscope can
magnify up to
500,000 X

Scientists can now begin to
draw conclusions about the
organization of living matter
Size, Shape, and Number
 It’s
important to understand that
cells vary in size and shape
depending on their functions!
Differentiation
The structural adaptation of some body
part for a particular function. There’s a lot
of different functions for all the different
cells.
 Some functions are: blood cells, skin cells,
brain cells, etc…
 Differentiation is usually expressed stating
how different tumor cells are from the
cells from which they originated.
