Biochemistry TEST Review WS: Inorganic and Organic Biochemistry
Review all Notes, Labs, Handouts, etc. This review is NOT comprehensive!
1.
Why is water inorganic? It doesn’t have carbon
2. List and explain several properties of water.
Adhesion –sticks to stuff; capillary action
Cohesion –sticks to itself; surface tension
3. Draw and label the pH scale. <7 acid
Low solid density –ice floats on water
Polar –Uneven charge; “universal solvent”
7-neutral
>7 basic
4. What element must all organic compounds contain? Carbon
5. List the 4 major organic compounds. Carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, nucleic acids
6. Fill in the chart below regarding the 4 organic compounds.
Organic Compound
Examples
Monomer/subunit
Sugars, starch,
Monosaccharide
Carbohydrates
cellulose
Fats, oils
Glycerol + fatty
acids
Energy storage in animals
Insulin, melanin,
myosin
Amino acid
Most of our body is made out of
proteins (skin, muscles), hormones
DNA, RNA
Nucleotide
(base,
phosphate,
sugar)
Information storage; heredity
Lipids
Proteins
Nucleic Acids
Important Facts/Characteristics
Quick energy ; energy storage in
plants
7. Which of the 3 organic compounds that are consumed for food stores the most energy (hint: which
contains the most Calories/gram)? lipids
8. Sketch the lipid bilayer of a cell membrane.
9. Differentiate between the three major polysaccharides (starch, glycogen, and cellulose) in terms of
which organisms store them and where they are stored. Also, indicate which of the three CANNOT be
digested by humans.
Starch is used by plants to store energy; cellulose is used in plants for structural support, and cannot
be digested by humans (wood). Glycogen is used as an energy deposit in the liver of animals.
10. Which of the 4 major organic compounds is made up of nucleotides? Nucleic Acids List the three
parts of a nucleotide: Sugar, Base, phoshpate
11. What is the difference between DNA and RNA in terms of sugar that each contains as well as function?
DNA has deoxyribose and contains the genetic code; RNA has ribose and helps translate that
code into proteins
12. Contrast saturated and unsaturated fats in terms of chemical structure (which only has single bonds
between carbons, which has some double bonds), state of matter at room temperature (solid vs. liquid),
from what type of organisms these are made (plant vs. animal), and example for each.
Saturated
Unsaturated
From animals
No double bonds
Solid at room temperature
from plants
Double bonds
Liquid at room temperature
13.
List the organic compound type that best fits the following chemical compounds.
Lipid
Nucleic acid
protein
carbohydrate