Macromolecules
CARBOHYDRATES
LIPIDS
PROTEINS
NUCLEIC ACIDS
CHNOPS, CHNOPS, CHNOPS, CHNOPS,
CHNOPS, CHNOPS… EVERYBODY!
What is a macromolecule?
 Large molecules made up of smaller building blocks
or subunits
 They are polymers made up of monomers!
 *Think back to that polymer you created in class that
was made up of 3 subunits (monomers)
Carbohydrates
 STRUCTURE:
 Contain mostly Carbon, Hydrogen, & Oxygen (CHO)
 Most carbohydrates have the composition of 1C:2H:1O ratio
 1:2:1 ratio is seen in glucose C6H12O6
 FUNCTION:
 Provide our cells with fuel (energy) to perform all cellular
activities
 Also provide strength and structure to cells and other
organisms (ex: insects)
Form follows function…
 Form follows function
 Phrase often used in biology meaning that the structure of an
organism will evolve to best fit its function!
 Ex: Sharks are streamline in order to swim quickly through the
water to catch prey (Streamline form evolved as a predation
advantage)
 Carbohydrates main function is energy!
 How does this relate to the structure of a carbohydrate?
 Carbs have a lot of C-H bonds, & when they are broken, a lot of
energy is released!
 This chemical energy can be used to make ATP!
Monosaccharides – Simple Sugars
 A single monomer
 Contain 3-6 Carbon atoms & when they are broken
down, the products are usually NOT carbohydrates
 Examples: Glucose, Fructose, Galactose
 What do you know about simple sugars?
Monosaccharides- Simple Sugars
Glucose
Fructose
 C6H12O6
 C6H12O6
 Most important to living
organisms
 All other sugars are
converted to glucose in
the body
 Found in sap & plants
naturally

Plants make this through
photosynthesis
 Found mostly in fruits,
veggies, & honey
 Sweetest of all sugars
If it ends in –ose, it’s a carbohydrate
Would sucrose be
considered a
monosaccharide?
Why or why not?
Glucose
 The 3 fates of glucose:
Fuel for cellular activity
1.


Stored temporarily as glycogen
2.



3.
Weak C-H bonds are broken in a glucose molecule & stronger bonds
are formed, which releases ENERGY that can be used by the cell
Instant cellular energy
If blood glucose is high & the body does not need energy, glucose can
be stored primarily in the liver (& muscle) as glycogen
Glycogen is a bunch of glucose molecules linked together and can
easily be broken down to release glucose into the blood when
necessary
Remember what chemical causes glycogen to be converted into
glucose?
Converted to fat for long-term storage
Dieting: Why does it work so well for the 1st
week?
 If you reduce the amount of calories you are consuming
& are exerting more energy (exercise), your body must
get energy from storage.
 Glycogen stores will be raided due to lack of glucose in
the blood stream.
 Glycogen is bound to large amounts of water.

1 lb of glycogen = 4 lbs of water molecules bound to it
 So as glycogen is removed from your tissues, so is a lot of
water
 Goodbye water weight.
 When your body begins to use fat as energy, weight loss
will slow dramatically because you will not be losing as
much water
Disaccharides
 2 monosaccharides bound together
 Sucrose is a disaccharide
 Glucose and fructose
 Lactose is a disaccharide
 Glucose and galactose
Polysaccharides- complex carbs
 When large numbers of simple sugars
(monosaccharides) are joined together
 What is the polymer? What are the monomers?
 Depending on what monosaccharides make up the
polysaccharide, they can function as stores of energy
or as structural material
Energy from disaccharides & polysaccharides is
harder to obtain
 First must break the bond between the individual
sugar molecules & then those sugar molecules can be
broken down (C-H bonds will release energy)
 Starch is a polysaccharide consisting of 100+ glucose
molecules joined together in a line


Starch is the form of energy storage in plants (corn, rice,
grains, potatoes)
Starch can still be used as energy, but it takes longer to break it
down… why?
Other Complex Carbohydrates
 Chitin
 Forms outer shell of insects and crustaceans
 What is the function of chitin?
 Cellulose
 Most prevalent compound on earth!
 Forms plant structures
 Indigestible to humans- but still important… Do you know
why?

Roughage- actually scrapes your digestive tract walls to rid them of
any unwanted/harmful products of digestion
Lipids
 Structure:



Made primarily of CHO
Just like carbs but in different proportions
Come in a variety of structures, making them harder to define
 Function:

Contain more stored energy than carbohydrates
 Characteristics of lipids:



Not soluble in water… what does this mean?
Greasy to touch
Nonpolar
Lipids
 Nonpolar due to long chains of C-H atoms
 Charge is shared equally by C and H
 Since lipids are nonpolar, they cluster together
rather than interact with water molecules

Remember that water is polar; lipids are not!
Lipids are often called hydrophobic… what does this mean?

Let’s try an experiment!

3 Types of Lipids
 Fats
 Long term energy storage & insulation
 Sterols
 Regulate growth & development
 Ex: cholesterol, sex hormones
 Phospholipids
 Form cell membranes that enclose cells, providing a barrier
Fats
 Glycerol head region and 2-3 long fatty acid
tails
 The fatty acid tails are hydrocarbons

Hydrocarbons = chain of a dozen or so carbons bonded
together with 1 or 2 hydrogen atoms on each carbon
atom
 Triglycerides are fats that have 3 fatty acid
hydrocarbon tails
 The chemical breakdown of fat molecules
release more energy than carbohydrates
Fats
Saturated Fats
Unsaturated Fats
 Each C atom in the fatty
 Some of the C atoms in
acid chains has 2 H
bonded to it; no double
bonds
 Found in animal fats,
meat, eggs, etc.
 Accumulate in your
bloodstream & narrow
vessels
 Fatty acids line up tightly
the fatty acid chains
only have 1 H atom,
thus have a double
bond to another C
 Found in avocados,
peanuts, plant oils
 Kinks in the tail due to
C=C
Saturated vs. Unsaturated Fats
Which is solid at room temperature? Which is liquid? Why?
What does “partially hydrogenated” mean?
 A liquid unsaturated fat
(like vegetable oil) has had
H added to it to make it
more saturated.
 Changes the texture and
consistency of the food
 Gives chocolate that melt
in your mouth texture
 It is less healthy though
because saturated fats are
more likely to accumulate
in your blood vessels since
they’re less reactive
Sterols
 Regulate growth & development
 Basic structure = 4 interlinked rings of C atoms
 Cholesterol is necessary for cell membranes, but if
you ingest too much cholesterol, it will attach to
blood vessels, thickening them

Increases blood pressure, making the heart pump harder
 Steroid hormones (testosterone & estrogen) regulate
sexual development and sperm & egg production

A variation of cholesterol
Phospholipids
 Make up the cell membrane that surrounds cells &
controls the flow of chemicals in and out of the cell
 Have a phosphorus head & 2 fatty acid tails
 Phosphate head is hydrophilic & always faces
outwards on the lipid bilayer
 The fatty acid hydrocarbon tails are hydrophobic and
face inwards
Proteins
 Function:
 Many functions; they are the building blocks of life!
 Make up bones, muscles, skin, feathers; fight microorganisms;
control chemicals in your blood stream; carry oxygen; act as
enzymes


Structural, protective, regulatory, contractile, transport
Enzymes- start and assist in chemical reactions
 Structure:
 Made from CHO & N and some have S
 Made up of 20 different amino acids (monomers)
Amino Acid Basic Structure
 Central C covalently
bonded to a carboxyl
group, amino group,
hydrogen, & R group
 The R group is the
only thing that differs
among the 20 amino
acids & is called a side
chain

Determines the amino
acids properties
Proteins in our Diets
 When we eat proteins, our body recycles the amino
acids to make more proteins
 Proteins can also store energy in their bonds
 Our bodies can make some amino acids, but about
half of the 2o cannot be made… where do we get
them?

These a.a. that we can’t make are called the essential amino
acids
Protein Structure
 Proteins are formed by linking amino acids together
with a peptide bond
 Dipeptide
 Polypeptide
Dehydration Synthesis Reaction
Primary Protein Structure
 The sequence of amino acids
in the polypeptide chain


Example: met
hionine-lysine-guanine-cysteineproline-valine
Secondary Protein Structure
 Amino acids in a
polypeptide chain do not
remain in a simple line,
but there are corkscrew
twists and pleated folds
formed by hydrogen
bonds between the amino
acids in the chain


Alpha helix
Beta pleated sheets
Tertiary Protein Structure
 The protein folds and
bends on itself forming
a complex 3D shape
based on the side chain
interactions with each
other and with the
aqueous surrounding
environment

What types of amino acids
are found in the middle of
the protein? Which on the
outside? Why?
Quaternary Protein Structure
 Some proteins have a quaternary structure if 2
different polypeptide chains are held together by
amino acids from each
 Hemoglobin is made of 4 polypeptide chains
 Protein structure is essential to proper function
Enzymes
 Proteins help initiate and speed up specific chemical
reactions in our bodies
 They remain unchanged at the end of the reaction,
thus can be reused again and again
 Active site- a groove in the protein that provides a
place for the participants (reactants or substrate) in
the chemical reaction to nestle
 Enzymes bind only with their substrate… how?
Nucleic Acids
 Function:
 Store information & play a role in the
production of proteins
 Structure:
 CHNOP
 Subunits called nucleotides that are made
up of a sugar, phosphate, & nitrogen base
 The backbone is alternating sugar and
phosphate groups and the nitrogen bases
are like rungs to the ladder
Types of Nucleic Acids
DNA- deoxyribonucleic
acid
RNA- ribonucleic acid
 Double stranded helix
 Single stranded
 Base pairs:
 Adenine & Thymine
 Guanine & Cytosine
 Base pairs:
 Adenine & Uracil
 Guanine & Cytosine
 Much longer
 Much shorter
Review
 What are the functions of each of the 4
macromolecules?
 What are the basic structures of each of the 4
macromolecules?
 Give an example of each of the 4 macromolecules.