Chapter 2

Lecture Outline

The Nature of Life

Copyright The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display.

Outline

Attributes of Living Organisms

Chemical and Physical Bases of Life The Elements: Units of Matter Molecules Valence, Bonds and Ions Acids, Bases and Salts Energy Chemical Components of Cells Monomers and Polymers

Carbohydrates Lipids Proteins Nucleic Acids

Attributes of Living Organisms

Composition and Structure

Cells - Structural units of organisms

Cytoplasm - Interior cell matrix

o

Nucleus - Houses genetic material (DNA) suspended in cytoplasm

Cell Wall - Bounds cytoplasm

Attributes of Living Organisms

Growth
Increase in mass accompanied by an increase in

volume

Results from production of new cells and includes variation in form

Controlled by genetic make up and environment

Reproduction

Production of offspring

Offspring always resemble parents.

Attributes of Living Organisms

Response to Stimuli
Plants respond to stimuli such as injury, light,

temperature and gravity.

Metabolism
Collective product of all biochemical reactions in

an organism

Respiration - Energy release Photosynthesis - Energy harnessing

Digestion - Conversion of large insoluble food molecules to smaller soluble molecules

Assimilation - Conversion of raw materials into cell substances

Attributes of Living Organisms

Movement
Occurs at all levels of organization

Usually slow and imperceptible

Mostly related to growth phenomena Cytoplasmic streaming is an example of movement at the cellular level.

Attributes of Living Organisms

Complexity of Organization
Molecules are organized into compartments,

membranes and other structures within cells.

Arrangements of molecules are highly structured

and complex.

Environmental Adaptation
Living organisms respond to their environment.

Natural selection adapts organisms to their

environment.

Chemical and Physical Bases of Life

The Elements: Units of Matter

Matter
Three states: solid, liquid, gas Occupies space Has mass Composed of elements

Chemical and Physical Bases of Life

The Elements: Units of Matter

Atoms - Smallest stable subdivision of an element

Nucleus - Center of an atom

Protons - Positively charged particles

Neutrons - Neutral particles

Model of an oxygen atom

Atomic Number - Number of

protons

Cannot change within an element

Atomic Mass - Combined

number of protons and neutrons

Chemical and Physical Bases of Life

The Elements: Units of Matter

Electrons - Negative electric charges circling the nucleus

Positively charged protons of nucleus attract

negatively charged electrons and determine paths of electrons.

Orbitals - Volume of space in which a given

electron occurs 90% of the time

Models of orbitals

Chemical and Physical Bases of Life

The Elements: Units of Matter

An electrons distance from the nucleus depends on its energy level.

Electron Shells

Energy levels of an atom

Associated with orbitals

Outermost shell determines the atoms reactivity.
o

Moving to an orbital farther away consumes energy.

Moving to an orbital closer in releases energy.
Energy levels of electrons

Chemical and Physical Bases of Life

The Elements: Units of Matter

Isotope - Form of an element that varies in its number of neutrons and atomic weight
Radioactive isotopes are unstable and

spontaneously split into smaller parts, releasing great amounts of energy.

Oxygen isotopes

Chemical and Physical Bases of Life

Molecules

Compound - Two or more elements united in a definite ratio by chemical bonds

Molecule - Two or more atoms bound together

Smallest independently existing particle of a

compound or element
In constant motion

Temperature increase or decrease speeds up or slows down molecules.

Number of molecule collisions increases with more movement or increased molecule density.

Chemical and Physical Bases of Life

Molecules

Random collisions between molecules capable of sharing electrons are the basis for all chemical reactions.
Often results in formation of new molecules Usually controlled by specific enzymes (catalyst)

A catalyst speeds up a reaction, without being used up in reaction

Chemical and Physical Bases of Life

Molecules

To form a water molecule: two hydrogen atoms attach to an oxygen atom.

Electrons are shared and form an electron cloud.

Gives molecule an asymmetrical shape

Asymmetrical shape and unequal sharing of

electrons cause water to become polar.

Polar molecule - One side of the molecule has a slight positive charge and the other side has a slight negative charge Polarity affects molecule alignment.
Water molecule

Chemical and Physical Bases of Life

Molecules

Water molecules form a cohesive network

Slightly positive hydrogen

atoms are attracted to slightly negative oxygen atoms.

Cohesion - Attraction of

similar molecules

Capillary movement in plants

Cohesion of water molecules

Adhesion - Attraction of

dissimilar molecules

Chemical and Physical Bases of Life

Valence, Bonds, and Ions

Valence - Combining capacity of an atom or an ion based on electron number

Bonds - Forces that form molecules by attracting and holding atoms together
Number of electrons in atoms outermost orbital

determines number of chemical bonds formed.

Formed by losing, gaining or sharing electrons to

fill outermost energy level with maximum number of electrons

Three types of bonds: covalent bonds, ionic

bonds and hydrogen bonds

Chemical and Physical Bases of Life

Valence, Bonds, and Ions

Covalent Bonds
Form when two atoms complete their outermost

energy level by sharing a pair of electrons

Electrons hold nuclei from two or more atoms

together and travel between them.

Nonpolar - Electrons

are shared equally.

Polar - Electrons are

shared unequally (like water).

Covalent bond between two oxygen atoms

Chemical and Physical Bases of Life

Valence, Bonds, and Ions

Ionic Bonds
Electrons in outermost orbital can be removed

from one atom and transferred to another atom.

Ions - Formed when molecules lose or gain electrons

Ionic bonds form when oppositely charged ions

come into contact.

Chemical and Physical Bases of Life

Valence, Bonds, and Ions

Hydrogen Bonds
Form as a result of attraction between positively

charged hydrogen atoms in polar molecules and negatively charged atoms in other polar molecules

Only have 710% strength of covalent bonds

Chemical and Physical Bases of Life

Acids and Bases

Acids are chemicals that release hydrogen atoms (H+) when dissolved in water.

Bases (alkaline compounds) are compounds that release hydroxyl ions (OH-) when dissolved in water.
pH scale represents measurement of H+ ion

concentration.
7 = Neutral (H+ and OH- are same concentration)

<7
>7

=
=

Acidic (the lower the number, the higher the acidity)

Alkaline (the higher the number, the higher the
alkalinity)

Chemical and Physical Bases of Life

Energy

Energy - The capacity to perform work Thermodynamics - Study of energy and its conversions from one form to another
First Law - Energy is constant. It cannot be

gained or lost, only converted from one form to another.

Second Law - When energy is converted to

another form, it flows from a high energy state to a low energy state and releases energy during the conversion.

Chemical and Physical Bases of Life

Energy

Forms of energy include kinetic and potential energy.

Potential energy is the capacity to do work owing

to the position or state of a particle.

Electrons with the least potential energy are located within the single spherical orbital closest to the atoms nucleus.

Electrons with the most potential energy are in the outermost orbital.

Chemical and Physical Bases of Life

Chemical Components of Cells

The living substance of cells includes cytoplasm and structures within it.

About 96% of a cell is composed of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen. Simple molecules and ions are converted to large, complex molecules through cell metabolism.

Chemical and Physical Bases of Life

Monomers and Polymers

Polymers (macromolecules) - many units

Formed when two or more small units called

monomers (single units) bond together

Bonding between monomers occurs by dehydration synthesis reactions and is controlled by enzymes.
Dehydration synthesis - Removal of water in the

formation of a bond

Chemical and Physical Bases of Life

Monomers and Polymers

Bonds between monomers are broken by hydrolysis.

Hydrolysis - occurs when a hydrogen becomes

attached to one monomer and a hydroxyl group to the other

Energy is released, which may be stored

temporarily or used in the manufacture or renewal of cell components.

Polymers include carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, and nucleic acids.

Carbohydrates

Carbohydrates are the most abundant organic compounds in nature.

Contain carbon, hydrogen and

oxygen in a ratio of CH2O

There are three basic kinds of

carbohydrates: monosaccharides, disaccharides, and polysaccharides.

Monosaccharides - Simple sugars with backbones of three to seven carbon atoms (glucose and fructose)

Carbohydrates

Disaccharides - Formed when two monosaccharides bond together by dehydration synthesis (sucrose) Polysaccharides - Formed when several to many monosaccharides bond together
Can be in long branched or unbranched

chains, or in coils of monosaccharides

Starch = coils of glucose molecules o main carbohydrate reserve of plants Cellulose = unbranched chain of glucose molecules o main structural polymer in plant cell walls

Lipids

Lipids are fatty or oily substances that are mostly insoluble in water (fats and oils).
Typically store twice as much energy as

carbohydrates
Important as long term energy reserves and as

structural components of cells

Contain carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen, but have

proportionately less oxygen than carbohydrates

Lipids

Fats and oils are produced from one molecule of glycerol and three fatty acid molecules.
Most fatty acids consist of a chain with 1618

carbon atoms.

Saturated - with hydrogen atoms attached to every available bonding site on carbons of fatty acid, and with no double bonds

Unsaturated - with fewer hydrogen atoms and with at least one double bond between carbon atoms

Structure of a fat molecule

Lipids

Waxes - Lipids consisting of long-chain fatty acids bonded to a long chain alcohol, instead of glycerol
Found on surfaces of leaves and stems

Phospholipids - Constructed like fats, but one of the fatty acids is usually replaced by a phosphate group
Important components of membranes

Proteins, Polypeptides, and Amino Acids

Proteins regulate chemical reactions in cells, are usually very large and consist of one or more polypeptide chains.
Polypeptides are composed of chains of amino

acids.

Each amino acid is composed of:

o o o

Amino group (-NH2) Carboxyl group (-COOH) R group - can vary from one hydrogen to a complex ring
Structure of amino acid, glycine

R groups are distinctive for each of 20 amino acids.

Proteins, Polypeptides, and Amino Acids

Polypeptide Structure
Primary Structure

Sequence of amino acids fastened together by peptide bonds

Secondary Structure

Formation of an alpha helix or of pleated sheets due to hydrogen bonding between amino acids

Proteins, Polypeptides, and Amino Acids

Polypeptide Structure
Tertiary Structure

Further coiling or folding maintained by interactions among R groups

Quaternary Structure

Association of more than one polypeptide to form a single functional protein

Storage Proteins

Some plant food-storage organs store small amounts of proteins in addition to large amounts of carbohydrates.
Examples include potato tubers and onion bulbs.

Seeds usually contain proportionately larger amounts of proteins in addition to their complement of carbohydrates.
A seeds proteins get used during germination

and during seedling development.

Seeds are important sources of nutrition for

humans and animals.

Enzymes

Enzymes are mostly large, complex proteins that function as organic catalysts under specific conditions.
Break bonds and allow new bonds to form,

facilitating chemical reactions

Increase reaction rates Lower the energy of activation

Energy of activation is the minimal amount of energy needed to cause molecules to react with one another.

Enzymes

Enzymes temporarily bond with substrate.

Substrate fits into

active site of enzyme.

Reaction occurs

rapidly and products are released.

Enzyme remains

unchanged and capable of catalyzing another reaction.

Mode of action of an enzyme

Nucleic Acids

Nucleic acids are very large, complex polymers.

Vital to internal communication and cell

functioning
There are two types:

Deoxyribonucleic Acid (DNA)

Ribonucleic Acid (RNA)
Nucleotide structure

DNA consists of a double helix of repeating subunits of 4 kinds of nucleotides.

Nucleotides are composed of a nitrogenous base,

a five-carbon sugar and a phosphate.

Nucleic Acids

DNA contains genes that code the information that determines the form and structure of an organism. DNA can be passed on from generation to generation without change.

RNA differs from DNA in its sugar and one of its nucleotide components. RNA occurs as a single strand and is involved in protein synthesis.

Outline

Attributes of Living Organisms

Chemical and Physical Bases of Life The Elements: Units of Matter Molecules Valence, Bonds and Ions Acids, Bases and Salts Energy Chemical Components of Cells Monomers and Polymers

Carbohydrates Lipids Proteins Nucleic Acids

Copyright McGraw-Hill Companies Permission Required for Reproduction or Display