Chapter

3
The Molecules of Life

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m
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PowerPoint Lectures created by Edward J. Zalisko for

Campbell Essential Biology, Sixth Edition, and

m
Campbell Essential Biology with Physiology, Fifth Edition
m Eric J. Simon, Jean L. Dickey, Kelly A. Hogan, and Jane B. Reece
Organic Molecules
Carbon is one of the most versatile and essential
atoms used in the building blocks of cells.
Molecules which contain carbon are referred to
as ___________________.
 Characteristics of Carbon allow it to form the
skeleton of most biological molecules.
Carbon has four electrons in an outer shell
that can hold ___________.
Carbon can therefore form _______________
__________.
 Double bond
Carbon skeletons vary in length Carbon skeletons may have double bonds,
which can vary in location

Carbon skeletons may be unbranched or branched Carbon skeletons may be arranged in rings
Macromolecules
On a molecular scale, most biological molecules
are very large.
These large molecules are called
__________________.
 Macromolecules are _______________.
Polymers are chains of many identical,
repeating, smaller molecules called
______________.

Animation: Polymers
 There are four types of molecules that make up
cells.
________________
________________
________________
________________
Carbohydrates
Carbohydrates are commonly used for energy as
in sugars or used for storage as in ___________
__________________.
Monosaccharides
_____________________are simple sugars.
They are the monomers of carbohydrates.
The most common example of a
monosaccharide is __________________.
Monosaccharides, especially glucose, serve
as the main fuel molecules for cellular work.

Animation: Isomers

Animation: L-Dopa
 b Abbreviated
ring structure
a Linear and ring structures
Disaccharides
_________________are double sugars.
They are formed by joining two monosaccharide
monomers together.

Animation: Disaccharides
 OH H

Glucose Galactose

H2O

___________
Polysaccharides
________________are complex carbohydrates.
They are long polymers consisting of many
monosaccharide monomers linked together.

Animation: Polysaccharides
 Glucose
monomer

Starch granules

a Starch
Glycogen
granules

b Glycogen
Cellulose fibril

Cellulose
molecules

c Cellulose
Lipids
Lipids are commonly referred to as fats.
They are _______________molecules, which
means they do not mix with water.
Oil (hydrophobic)
(water hating)

Vinegar (hydrophilic)
(water loving)
 Fats perform essential functions.
Extra energy storage.
___________________
___________________
 Fats consist of ______________________linked
to a molecule called ______________.

Animation: Fats
 H HO
Fatty acid

H2O

Glycerol
(a) A dehydration reaction linking a fatty acid to glycerol

(b) A fat molecule with a glycerol head and three

energy-rich hydrocarbon fatty acid tails
Proteins
Proteins are the macromolecules responsible for
almost all of a ________________.

MAJOR TYPES OF PROTEINS

Structural Proteins Storage Proteins Contractile Proteins Transport Proteins Enzymes
Amino Acids
Amino acids are the monomers of proteins.
Organisms possess ___________________.
Amino acids are composed of
Amino group
Carboxyl group
Side group (each side group is different in each amino
acid)
 Amino Carboxyl
group group

Side
group

a The general structure of an amino acid

Hydrophobic Hydrophilic
side group side group

Leucine Serine
b Examples of amino acids with hydrophobic and hydrophilic
side groups
 Amino acid monomers are linked together to
form ____________________.
Tens of thousands of proteins exist within
cells due to different arrangements of just 20
amino acids.
 Carboxyl Amino
group group

Side Side
group group

Amino acid Amino acid

Dehydration reaction

Side Side
group group

Peptide bond
Figure 3.18-1

One amino acid

(alanine)
1

129
Nucleic Acids
Nucleic acids are macromolecules that store
genetic information.
They provide the directions for ___________
_________________.
There are two types of nucleic acids.
_________(deoxyribonucleic acid).
_________(ribonucleic acid).
DNA
Nucleic acids are polymers formed by joining together
many nucleotide monomers.
DNA nucleotides consist of three components.
The sugar deoxyribose.
A phosphate group.
One of four possible nitrogenous bases.
________________
________________
________________
________________
 Nitrogenous base
______________

Thymine T

__________
________ Phosphate
Base

________
__________ Sugar

a Atomic structure b Symbol used in this book

 Sugar-phosphate _____________
backbone _____________

Nucleotide

Base pair

Hydrogen
bond

Bases

a DNA strand (b) Double helix

polynucleotide (two polynucleotide strands)
RNA
RNA differs slightly from DNA.
RNA nucleotides have the sugar _________
instead of deoxyribose.
The nitrogenous base __________ replaces
thymine (T).