Tutorial - Chemistry of Life (refer to Appendix A1)

Biologically important types of molecules

A. Carbohydrates

Basic chemical formula: (CH2O)n

1. Monosaccharides - glucose, fructose, galactose, ribose

2. Disaccharides - sucrose, lactose, maltose, cellobiose

3. Polysaccharides - starch, glycogen, cellulose, chitin

B. Proteins

Basic chemical formula: H2N - HCR - COOH

1. Amino acids

2. Dipeptides - 2 amino acids joined by a peptide bond

3. Oligopeptides - short chains of amino acids

4. Proteins - chains of generally > 100 amino acids

C. Lipids

1. Steroids - cholesterol, testosterone, estrogen

2. Fatty acids - linoleic acid

3. Triglycerides - glycerol + 3 fatty acids

4. Phospholipids - glycerol + 2 fatty acids + phosphate

D. Nucleic Acids

1. DNA - chains of nucleotides

2. RNA - ribose + phosphate + nitrogen base