UNIT 2

BIOCHEMICAL MOLECULES
 2.1 INORGANIC MOLECULES
 WATER
 2.2 ORGANIC MOLECULES
 I. CARBOHYDRATES
 II. LIPIDS
 III. PROTEINS
 IV.NUCLEIC ACIDS
 Unit 2
Biochemical molecules
 Biological molecules can be classified into two main types:
 Inorganic molecule; ;
 Contain either carbon or hydrogen or neither of them
 Relatively small and simple compound
 E.g. minerals and water
 Organic molecules.
 Always contain both carbon and hydrogen
 The main structural component of living cell
 Regulate metabolic reaction and provide energy for life
process
 Includes lipids carbohydrates, proteins and nucleic
acids
 Activity 2.1: Grouping Molecules into organic and
inorganic and make a table.

1. C12H22O11 (sucrose) 6. H2SO4 (sulphuric

2. CO (carbon
acid)
monoxide) 7. C3H6O3 (lactic acid)
3. C5H10O4 (deoxyribose) 8. C6H14N2O2 (lysine – an
4. C18H36O2 (stearic acid
amino acid)
– a fatty acid) 9. C10H16N5O13P3 (ATP)
5. NO2 (nitrogen 10. NaCl (sodium
dioxide) chloride
 2.1 INORGANIC MOLECULES
 Inorganic molecules are molecules that contain either carbon
or hydrogen or neither of them. E.g. water H2O, Carbon
dioxide CO2, Calcium carbonate CaCo3
 The most common elements in many cells are that make up
95% of the body weight of organisms
 Hydrogen 59%
 Oxygen 24%
 Carbon 11%
 Nitrogen 4%
 phosphorus and Sulphur 2%
 Other that are important for humans are
 Calcium (Ca) for bones, teeth and muscles,
 Chlorine (Cl) for digesting food
 Fluorine (F) for tooth enamel
 WATER
 The most abundant
component of the living cell.
 Chemical formula for water
– H2O.
 Have bent into a „v‟ shape.
 It is formed by hydrogen
bond
 Hydrogen bonds are an
electrostatic interaction
between molecules of
compound in which
hydrogen atoms bounded to
electronegative atoms such
as oxygen.
 Importance of water
 Water has many important to living things in a
number of ways, such as:
 a place to live for the varieties of organisms
 a transport medium
 a reactant in many chemical reaction
 a place for other reactions to take place
 Water is a vital chemical constituent of living cells
 Water exhibit the following properties
1. Transparent; allow light to pass, which is important for
photosynthetic activities of plants and algae found in aquatic
habitats
 Different wavelengths of light penetrate to different depths.
Red and indigo wavelengths are soon lost. Blue and green
wavelengths penetrate deeper than others.
 2. Water has a high specific heat
capacity.
Specific heat capacity; the amount of heat required
to rise the temperature of one gram of substance
by one degree celsius.
Water has a specific heat capacity 4.2 J of energy to
heat one gram of water by one degree celsius
Because of its high specific heat capacity, organisms
resist changing its temperature when it absorbs or
loss heat.
Water high specific heat capacity help the organism
To maintain a constant internal temperature
Minimize fluctuations in temperature inside cells.
 3. Water has a high latent heat of
vaporization.
 Latent heat of vaporization the amount of energy
needed to converting one gram a liquid to a gas at
constant temperature
 Water requires a lot of energy to change liquid water into
vapor (or steam).
 High heat of vaporization use as a cooling mechanism
in animals as water evaporates from the surface of
animals
 4. High heat of fusion
 Latent heat of fusion the measure of heat energy to
melt the solid (ice).
 Ice water requires relatively large amount of energy to
melt it
 Melting of 1 mole of ice water requires 5.9KJ of
energy
 Similarly liquid water loss large amount of energy to
freeze
 Therefor the contents of cells and their environment
less likely to freeze
 5. Solid water (ice) is less dense than
liquid water.
The density of water decrease below 40 C
and ice tend to floats
This is because water expands when it
freezes. in cold weather, water freezes from
the top down.
So water insulated under the ice enables life
to persist under the frozen water.
6.Water has a high surface tension.
Surface tension is the tension at the surface of a
liquid resulting from unbalanced forces acting
on the molecules at the surface
High surface tension of water is due to strong
attraction force of water molecule called
cohesion.
High surface tension allows organisms to live
on and just below the surface
 6. Water is a good solvent for many
substances
 Many organic and inorganic substances dissolve in
water.
 Solvent property of water use
 To transport dissolved substance through osmosis,
diffusion and active transport
 To transport dissolved minerals upwards from the roots
through xylem vessels.
 To transport dissolved organic substances through
phloem tubes all over the plant.
 8.Water has the ideal viscosity for a
transport medium.
 Viscosity is a measure of how a fluid flows easily or the
measure of resistance to flow
 It helps for effective transportation of substance in the body
and cells
 If water were more viscous (less fluid) than it is;
 Blood cells do not move through the blood vessels.
 delicate organelles in the cells would be damage
 If water were less viscous (more fluid) than it is,
 It would flow too easily and, inside cells, the organelles would
not be supported.
 A less viscous liquid would not move the blood cells around
the system as efficiently
 9. Water as a reactant.
Many reactions in living things need water as a
raw material.
Photosynthesis: water is the source of hydrogen
ion to reduce CO2 to sugar
Hydrolysis : water molecules are used to split
large food molecules into smaller ones that can
be absorbed into the bloodstream
Important in the transport of carbon dioxide
around the body as hydrogen carbonate ions.
 10. Water as a medium for chemical
reactions.
 Many chemical reactions are taking place inside cells.
 Many of these take place on the membrane systems of the cell,
but others take place in the liquid „cytosol‟ of the cytoplasm.
 Many of the reactions of photosynthesis and respiration take
place in the liquid inner regions of chloroplasts and
mitochondria.
 Water is an ideal medium for these reactions, some of the
reasons are;
 It can dissolve many substances; the reactions will only take
place effectively in solution.
 It has a low viscosity; the particles can move around and
come easily into contact with each other.
 Summery of water biology
Water property Significance for life
 High transmission  Light can pass through the cell for
photosynthesis
 high latent heat of  Use as a cooling mechanism in animals by
vaporization. evaporation
 Ice less dense than  Ice form an insulating layer under water
water
 high surface tension  allows organisms to live on and just below the
surface
 Solvent property  Used for transport dissolved substance and
medium of reaction
 Ideal viscosity  Effective transportation of substance in the
body and cells
 2.2 ORGANIC MOLECULES
 Organic molecules are molecules that contain
carbon and hydrogen
 There are four classes of organic compound in
any living things
I. Carbohydrates
II. Proteins
III. Lipids
IV. Nucleic acid
 I. CARBOHYDRATES
 All carbohydrates biological molecule that contain the elements
carbon, hydrogen and oxygen atoms in the proportion of 1:2:1
respectively. (E.g. glucose, C6H12O6, and maltose, C12H22O11).
 The ratio hydrogen and oxygen atoms always 2:1
General property of carbohydrates
1) Carbon chain contains carbonyl functional group either aldehyde
(aldose) or ketone groups (ketoses).
 Aldehyde are easily oxidized because they have a hydrogen
atom attached to the carbonyl group.
 Ketones do not have hydrogen bond attached to the carbonyl
group and hence resist oxidation.
2) Contain several hydroxyl group on the carbon chain
 The hydroxyl group determines the property of water
 Carbohydrates have a range of
functions:
1. They are used as the main source of energy for the body
2. Serves as storage form of energy in plants and animals.
 Starch: storage form of carbohydrates plants
 Glycogen: storage form of carbohydrates animals
3. They are used as structural components include:
 Cellulose; the main constituent of cell wall of plants
 Chitin; the components of cell walls of fungi and the
exoskeletons of insects
 Peptidoglycan; the components bacterial cell walls
4. Use as a cell surface marker for cell to cell identification
 Classification of carbohydrates
 Carbohydrates categories into three major groups
depending on the complexity of the molecules:
1) Monosaccharaides/ simple sugars/
2) Disaccharides /double sugars /
3) Polysaccharides/ complex sugars/
 1) Monosaccharaides
 Monosaccharaides comes from Greek:
 MONOS, single /one/
 SACCHAR, sugar
 They are made up of a one sugar unit.
 They are the simplest form carbohydrates.
 Cannot broken down to simpler sugar by hydrolysis
 They are soluble in water, sweet and crystalline
 All have the formula Cn (H2O)n, where the number of
carbon atom in the chain can be 3-7
 There are two functional groups in
monosaccharaides:
1. Aldehyde (CHO); monosaccharaides with this
group are aldoses
E.g. Glyceraldehyde, Ribose, Glucose, Galactose
2. Ketone group (C=O): monosaccharaides with this
group are ketoses.
E.g. dihydroxyaceton, Ribulose, Fructose
Aldose and ketoses sugar
 Monosaccharaides can be classified according the
carbon atoms present in the molecule.
Triose (C3H6O3) contains
three carbon atoms.
 Glyceraldehyde and
dihydroxyaceton are
intermediate molecule in
photosynthesis and respiration.
 Glyceraldehyde and
dihydroxyaceton are isomers Dihydroxyaceton
Glyceraldehyde
 Isomers are molecule with the
same chemical composition,
but a different arrangements of
atoms
 Pentose
 A pentose (C5H10O5) monosaccharide has five carbon atoms.
 Ribose and deoxyribose are found in nucleic acid.
 Ribulose is intermediate molecule in photosynthesis

Ribose Ribulose
 Hexose
Hexose (C6H12O6 ) monosaccharide has six carbon
atoms. Glucose, Galactose, Fructose are the most
commonly known hexose.
Glucose “blood sugar”
immediate source of energy
for cellular respiration
Fructose; a sugar found in
honey, fruit and nectar
Glucose is the hexose
produced in photosynthesis Glucose Galactose Fructose
and used in respiration.
 Contd.
 The significant difference of aldose and
ketose sugar are lies on their ability to
form polymers.
 Nearly all the polysaccharides found in
living things are polymers of aldose
monosaccharaides. α-Glucose
 Monosaccharaides can form either straight
chain or ring structure.
 When glucose molecule in are in aqueous
solution, they forms α-glucose and β-
glucose ringed structure
 The difference between α glucose and β-
glucose is the position of –OH on the first
carbon
β-Glucose
 2) Disaccharide;
 Disaccharides are made up of two simple sugars
joined together by condensation reaction.
 Condensation reaction joins two simple sugars to form
a double sugar, and a molecule of water (H2O) is
removed.
 The bond formed between two simple sugar are
glycosidic bond
 The formula of disaccharide is C12H22O11
Some of the common double sugars are :
 Maltose (malt sugar); C12H22O11
 is derived from two α-glucose molecules
 two α-glucose molecules is linked by α 1,4 glycosidic bond
 it is a reducing sugar ( reduce Benedict‟s reagent)
 Sucrose (table sugar) C12H22O11
 is derived from an α-glucose and a β fructose molecule
 it is a non-reducing sugar ( do not reduce Benedict‟s reagent)
 α-glucose and a β fructose molecule is linked by α 1,2 glycosidic
bond
 Lactose (milk sugar) C12H22O11
 Is derived from a β-glucose and α-galactose molecule.
 it is a reducing sugar ( reduce Benedict‟s reagent)
 β-glucose and α-galactose molecule is linked by β 1,4 glycosidic
bond
Disaccharide formation
 3) Polysaccharides;
 Polysaccharides are long chain of many Condensation
monosaccharaides joined by glycosidic (dehydration)
bonds
 formation of
 They are polymers that are formed by
condensation reaction macromolecule by
removing water
 Thy have two functions:
Hydrolysis
 Energy storage (starch and glycogen)
 Structural material (cellulose and  break a
chitin) macromolecule into
 Complex and stable forms of its unit of molecules
carbohydrates by adding water
 It is insoluble so it does not change the
water potential of the cell
Some biological important polysaccharides

I. Starch
 Starch is a major energy storage in plants,
 Starch is a mixture of amylose and amylopectin.
 Both are polymers of α-glucose, but the arrangement is
different.
Amylose
 Amylose is liner; a straight chain polymer of α-glucose
units
 The bonding involved is α-1, 4-glycosidic bonds.
 The long chain α-glucose winds itself into a helix.
 Amylopectin
 Amylopectin is a branched chain polymer of α-glucose
units
 The bonding involved is;
 α-1, 4-glycosidic linkage for straight chain
 α-1, 6-glycosidic linkage for branched chain
 Amylopectin having a branching chain, this gives many
„ends‟ to the molecule.
 Branching chain allows amylopectin to be hydrolysed
quickly by amylase enzymes and release glucose for
respiration.
Amylose and Amylopectin
 II. Glycogen
 Glycogen is a storage carbohydrate in animal cells.
 Short and highly branched chain of α-glucose
 The bond involved are α-1,4 glycosidic bond and α-1,6
side branches,
 Glycogen has similar structure with amylopectin but it
have more α-1,6 side branches
 Because of this, it can be hydrolysed more easily during
respiration to release more glucose than starch.
 This is important because animals to supply high amount
energy more quickly .
A short highly branched chain A less branched chain α-glucose
α-glucose compare to glycogen
Glycogen Amylopectin
 III. Cellulose
 The main component of cell walls.
 The most abundant organic molecule on the earth
 Cellulose is a polymer of β-glucose molecules joined by β-1,4 -
glycosidic bonds,
 Has straight, unbranched chains that run parallel to one another
 Allowing H-bonds to form cross-links between adjacent chains
 So many hydrogen bonds help to strengthen to cellulose
 Cellulose does this by grouping together to form microfibrils 
fibres
 Human cannot hydrolysis cellulose because they do not possess
enzyme necessary to break down β-glucose glycosidic linkage
 II. LIPIDS
 Lipids are made of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen,
but they contain much less oxygen than
carbohydrates.
 Some of the lipids found in the myelin sheath that
surrounds nerve cells are sphingolipids. These are
unusual lipids as they contain nitrogen as well as
carbon, hydrogen and oxygen.
 Lipids contain much energy per gram than
carbohydrates and proteins
 A lipid molecule is hydrolyzed into three fatty acid
molecules and glycerol
 They are insoluble in water and soluble in organic
solvent like aceton, ether, alcohol etc.
Contd.
Lipids includes triglycerides, oils, fats, waxes,
phospholipids, steroids
Three different function of lipids in our bodies
Energy storage E.g. Triglycerides
Forming the membrane around the cell E.g.
Phospholipids
Hormone and enzymes E.g. Steroids
 Lipids are a varied group of
compounds that include:
 Triglycerides – formed from glycerol and three fatty
acids
 Phospholipids – formed from glycerol, two fatty acids
and a phosphate group
 Waxes – formed from fatty acids and long-chain
alcohols
 Lipids have several functions
including:
 Respiratory substrate –yields many molecules of
ATP (twice as much energy) per gram than a molecule
of glucose.
 Thermal insulation – the cells of adipose tissue found
under the skin used as insulation layer under skin
 Buoyancy – lipids are less dense than water (oil floats
on water), so the presence of large amounts of lipid
reduces the density of an animal, making it more
buoyant
 Waterproofing – the oils secreted by some animals
onto their skin are lipids
 1. Triglycerides
The most commonly lipids in nature
Formed from one glycerol and three fatty acid
molecules.
Glycerol and fatty acids combines using condensation
reaction
 In making triglycerides three molecule of water is removed
The bond that link glycerol and fatty acid are called
ester bonds
Ester bonds formed between a carboxyl group
fatty acid and a hydroxyl group glycerol.
Formation of triglyceride
 Contd.
 Glycerol is a poly hydroxyl alcohol that
contain 3 hydroxyl (–OH) functional group.
 Fatty acids consists;
Covalently bonded hydrocarbon chain.
The carboxyl functional group (-COOH)
 The nature of the hydrocarbon chains in fatty
acids can differ in two main ways: Glycerol
The length of the carbon chain
The degree of saturation.
 Saturated fatty acid
 Carbon atoms are joined by a single covalent bond.
 Carbon chain are fully saturated with hydrogen‟s (more
energetic)
 More common in animals lipids
 Solid at room temperature
 Saturated fat, in diet are not good for our long- term
health
 E.g. butter, animal fat
 Unsaturated fatty acid
 The carbon chains have one or more double bonds in them.
 Carbon chain are not fully saturated with hydrogen‟s (less
energetic)
 more common in plant lipids
 liquid at room temperature
 E.g. vegetable oils
Monounsaturated fatty acid one carbon–carbon double
bond
Polyunsaturated fatty acid more than one carbon–carbon
double bonds
 Polyunsaturated fatty acid generally expected to give
better health benefit present in human diet.
1. Which of the following molecule is not a polymer?
A. Cell wall B. Enzymes C. Lipid D. Starch
2. A compound with the following formula C5 H11 COOH
Would be
A. Amino acids B. Nucleic acids
C. Fatty acids D. Carbohydrates
3. How many glycerol and fatty acids, respectively, are needed to form 100 molecule of
triglycerides
A. 100 and 300 C. 50 and 50
B. 100 1nd 100 D. 150 and 400
4. Some animal like polar beer have a thick layer of fat under the skin, for what
purpose does the polar beer mainly use this
A. used as body building C. Water proofing layer
B. Used as insulation layer D. Make a beer bayonet
5. In equal amount of the following food is hydrolysed which one of the following
generate high amount of energy?
A. Honey B. Bean C. Olive oil D. Dabo
2. Phospholipids= one glycerol molecule + two fatty
acid + a phosphate group.
 There are two distinct regions to a phospholipid molecule:
 Hydrophilic (water-loving) polar region, consisting of the
phosphate group
 Hydrophobic (water-hating) non polar region, consisting of
the fatty acid chain

Fatty acid ‘tails‟

Hydrophilic Hydrophobic
 Phospholipids are called amphipathic
lipids due to
 Phosphate hydrophilic tail (soluble in
water)
 Hydrocarbon/fatty acid chain/
hydrophobic tail ( insoluble in water)
 Phospholipids are important constituent
of plasma membranes.
 In water, phospholipids organized into a
bilayer.
Hydrophobic
 The hydrophilic heads face outwards Hydrophilic
Head group Head group
into the water
 The hydrophobic tails face inwards,
away from the water.
 Phospholipid bilayer are the base of
plasma membrane
 A B
1. Carbon atom are joined by a single A. Unsaturated fatty
bond acids
2. Formed from one glycerol and three B. Dehydrogenation
fatty acid molecules C. Triglycerides
3. The carbon chains have one or more D. Saturated fatty
double bonds acids
4. lipid containing glycerol molecule, E. Phospholipids
two fatty acids and a phosphate F. Glycerol
group. G. Hydrogenation
5. They are called amphipathic lipids
6. Used in making plasma membrane
7. Reaction convert oil into solid
 3. Waxes
 Formed from fatty acid and a long chain of
monohydric alcohol
 Commonly found wherever water proofing is needed
such as;
 Leaf cuticle, Insects exoskeletons
 Birds feathers”
 Mammals fur
 4 Steroids
 Lipids characterized by 4 bonded carbon ring
 Lipids with no fatty acids chain
 Classified as lipids b/c they are insoluble in water
 Different steroids differ from each other by their side group.
 Examples of steroids.
 Cholesterol
 Steroids hormone
 Progesterone
 Testosterone
 Cortisol
 Vitamin D
 Adrenal hormones
 Bile salts
Matching
A B
1. Chemical reaction convert lipid into A. Waxes
glycerol and fatty acid B. Hydrolysis
2. Chemical reaction make lipids from C. Dehydration
fatty acid and glycerol D. Steroids
3. Used as water proofing such as leaf E. Phospholipids
cuticle F. Neural fat
4. Lipids without fatty acids chains G.Triglycerides
5. Formed from fatty acid and a long
chain of monohydric alcohol
6. Water molecule is used up
7. Its back bone is four bonded carbon
ring
8. Used in making hormone and vitamins
 Summary questions
1. What makes phospholipids molecules arrange
themselves into bilayer in a water molecule?
2. What makes phospholipids Amphipathic in nature?
3. What determine the fluidity of lipids?
4. Why lipids are insoluble in water?
5. Why lipids contain much energy per gram than
carbohydrates and proteins?
 III. PROTEINS
 Proteins are extremely important substances that are needed
to form all living cells.
 Contain the elements carbon, hydrogen and oxygen but
also contain nitrogen and sulphur.
 Protein requires a templates molecule for its synthesis.
 Protein molecules are polymers of amino acids. However,
there are usually twenty different amino acids in any given
protein
 Formed by amino acid condensation and a molecule water
is released
 Typical amino acid structure
 All amino acid have to four chemical groups attached to
α-carbon (central carbon)
1. A hydrogen atom
2. An amino group (–NH2)
3. A carboxyl group (–COOH)
4. An ‘R’ group (side chain)
α-carbon
 Different amino acid have different „R‟ group

Amino group Carboxyl group

Side chain
 Contd.
 Amino acids are a building block of protein with two functional
groups with opposite charges:
1) the amino group - a base
2) the carboxyl group- an acid
 Peptide bond is the bond that link two amino acids.
 The „H’ from the amino group on one amino acid and ‘OH’ from
the carboxyl group on the other amino acid are lost as water
during peptide bond formation.
 Proteins have a range of functions; they are
important in:
a) Protein provide structure: they are structure of:
 Plasma membrane ( such as channel, carrier and receptor protein)
 Connective tissue (collagen)
 Hair and nail ( keratin)
 Chromosome (histone)
b) Regulate body metabolism ;
 Enzymes are protein that speed up the rate of chemical reaction in
cell.
c) Transport and store molecule.
 Hemoglobin is a complex protein transport oxygen throughout the
body.
d) The immune system ;
 Antibodies are proteins that defend the body against foreign
antigen.
 Level of organization in protein structure
Primary structure
 The sequence of amino acids in a polypeptide chain. E.g.
Insulin
Secondary structure β-Plated
α-Helix
 The secondary structure is formed by folding of the sheet
primary structure into either an α-helix or a β-pleated
sheet
 α-helix or a β-pleated sheet are held in shape by hydrogen
bonds
 The two most common secondary structure are an α-helix
or a β-pleated sheet
1) α-helix a coiled secondary structure of a polypeptide
 H-bond occur between atoms with in the same poly
peptide chain
2) β-pleated sheet a folded secondary structure of a polypeptide
 H-bond takes place between poly peptide chain
 Tertiary structure
 Involves three dimensional folding of the secondary structure
 The new bonds to hold the tertiary structure in place includes;
 Hydrogen bonds – between the R-groups of some amino
acids
 Disulphide bridges (S-S)– between amino acids that contain
sulphur
 Ionic bonds – between amino acids with positively &
negatively charged R-groups
 Hydrophobic interaction
 The tertiary structure of a protein gives each protein a specific
function. For example:
 the shape of the active site of an enzyme
 the shape of a hormone receptor in the plasma membrane
 the shape of an antibody to destroy just one antigen
 Quaternary structure.
 Quaternary structure structures is
formed when two or more
polypeptide chains folded into a
tertiary structure become
associated in the final structure of
the protein
 Different polypeptide chain are
arranged together by ionic and H-
bond between polypeptide chain
 Two important examples are;
 Hemoglobin
 Collagen (the fibrous protein
found in many tissues in
Hemoglobin molecule
mammals).
 Proteins are classified into two main groups,
according to their molecular shapes:
Proteins are classified into two main
groups, according to their molecular
shapes:
1.Fibrous proteins; a long thread like
structure, have structural role that have
a tertiary structure that resembles a
long string or fiber
 (e.g. collagen-bone, keratin-hair and
nail, tubulin-cytoskeleton and actin-
muscle)
2.Globular proteins; resembles a glob Fibrous Globular
or ball shaped protein protein
 E.g. Enzymes, insulin, hemoglobin,
immunoglobulin and receptor
proteins.
Protein structure
 IV. NUCLEIC ACIDS
 Nucleic acid are the forth major organic compound.
 They are molecule which make up genetic material of the
cell.
 Nucleic acids allow organisms to transfer genetic
information from one generation to the next.

 There are two class of nucleic acids found in cells

 DNA or Deoxyribo nucleic Acid
 RNA or Ribonucleic Acid:
 All nucleic acids are made up of the same monomer called
nucleotides
 Nucleic acids are a polymer of nucleotides
 Components of nucleotides

Nucleotides made up
of three components:
Phosphate group
Pentose sugar
Nitrogenous bases
 Phosphate group
and nitrogenous
base are covalently
bonded to sugar
 Two types of nitrogenous bases
1) Purine
Purine
 Have double ring
 Adenine and
Guanine
2) Pyrimidine
 Have single ring Pyrimidine
 Cytosine, Thymine,
Uracil
 Phosphodiester bond formation

 Phosphodiester
bond is the bond
that link two
nucleotides The „H’
from the sugar on
one nucleotide and
‘OH’ from the
phosphate on the
other nucleotide are
lost as water during
phosphodiester
bond formation.
 Two class of nucleic acids
 DNA or Deoxyribo Nucleic Acid
 DNA nucleic acid containing the genetic
information
 DNA is made up of two polynucleotide
DNA RNA
chain.
 DNA molecule has twisted double helix
structure
 DNA back bone is made of
deoxyribose sugar and phosphate.
 RNA or Ribonucleic Acid
 RNA composed of a single
polynucleotide chain
 RNA found both in the nucleus and the
cytoplasm.
 RNA is much smaller
The structure of DNA and RNA
The difference between DNA and RNA
 Feature DNA RNA
Structure  Double stranded molecule  Single stranded molecule
Sugar  Deoxyribose  Ribose
Nitrogen bases  Adenine, Thiamine,  Adenine, Uracil, Cytosine
Cytosine and Guanine and Guanine
Location  Found in nucleus and  Found in nucleus and
mitochondria cytoplasm
Size  Huge.  Much smaller.
Stability  Very stable  Less stable
Function  DNA replicates and stores  RNA transfer genetic
genetic information information from the
nucleus to ribosome to make
protein
Base pair  (Adenine - Thymine)  (Adenine-Uracil)
 (Cytosine -Guanine)  (Cytosine-Guanine)
 Food test
Food Reagent used Positive result
Carbohydrates
 Starch  Iodine solution  Blue black color
 Reduced sugar. E.g.  Benedicts solution  Orange /red /
glucose precipitates
 Non-Reduced sugar.  Benedicts solution and  Orange /red /
E.g. sucrose hydrochloric acid precipitates
Proteins
 Biuret test  Biuret reagent  Purple color
Lipids
 Emulsion test  Ethanol solution  White or cloudy
layer
 Milky suspension
Reducing sugars will act as reducing agents in an alkaline solution
because reduce copper (II) ions (blue) to copper (I) ions (brick red)