The Carbon Chemistry of Life

Carbon Chemistry

· All chemicals of life (except water) are carbon based. They are referred to as the organic compounds.

· The 4 major classes of organic chemicals are of biological importance are produced only in living cells. They include carbohydrates, proteins, lipids, and nucleic acids.

· Carbon is the backbone of these molecules.

· It forms 4 stable bonds.

· It often bonds with H to form hydrocarbons.

Functional Groups

· Groups that consist of clusters of reactive elements such as C, H, O, N, P.

· The most common functional groups are:

Group

Major Classes of Molecules

Hydroxyl

Alcohols

Sulfhydryl

Many cellular molecules

Phosphate

Nucleotides, nucleic acids, many other cellular molecules

Amino

Amino acids

Carboxyl

Organic acids

Carbonyl

Aldehydes

Ketones

Characteristics of Functional Groups

· Makes them very reactive.

· Important to help the large macromolecules interactive with other molecules in the body.

· Compare: ethane (non-polar) and ethanol (polar)

· Ethanol could dissolve in the cytosol and be used as an energy source.

· Carboxyl, COOH, and Phosphate, PO₄, both release a proton in aqueous solutions, making them act as acids.

· Amino groups, NH₂, are able to accept a H⁺, making them a weak base.

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from 10/09/2015

The Carbon Chemistry of Life