CELLULAR CHEMISTRYChemicals Matter—You’re Made of Them!

By: Heidi Hisrich

Examination• Look at your hand. What do you see? What if you

zoomed in? What’s the smallest thing you could see?• Your hand is made of cells, which are made of molecules, which

are made of atoms. But where did they all come from? How did they get there?

Food!• We are, quite literally, what we eat!

• Almost every atom in every molecule in every cell in our bodies came from food (a little bit came from water and air), so what we eat IS matter AND matters!

Molecules• And the food we eat is made of molecules

• A molecule is a group of atoms that are stuck together and most atoms are found in molecules

The 4 Types of Macromolecules• There are 4 main kinds of molecules (besides water) in

the foods that we eat. They are all ORGANIC (alive). What are they?

•Carbohydrates•Lipids•Proteins•Nucleic Acids

Nucleic Acids• Found in ALL living things—allow them to pass on traits

from parents to offspring (heredity)• There are 2 kinds. What are they?

RNA (ribonucleic acid)

DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid)

RNASingle stranded

Sugar is ribose

Bases are A, C, G & U

DNADouble stranded

Sugar is deoxyribose

Bases are A, C, G & T

Function

Store genetic info (DNA) and transcribe and translate it into protein (RNA)

Monomer that makes them up

nucleotides

Elements found in them

•Oxygen•Hydrogen•Carbon•Phosphorus•Nitrogen

Foods they’re in?

EVERYTHING!

Proteins• What our bodies are mostly MADE OF—we are made of

protein, just like the animals we eat for protein are (cows, chickens, fish, etc).• What is the building block (monomer) that makes them up?

Sketch and label the parts

How many are there?

Only 20 in humans, but they make up MILLIONS of different proteins!

Amino Acids

Elements in proteins

Carbon

Hydrogen

Nitrogen

Oxygen

What do they look like?

Most complicated type of

macromolecule BY FAR!!!

Examples of Proteins

Keratin

collagen

Indicator• Biuret

Protein-Heavy Foods

From animal sources From vegetable sources

4 Types of Proteins

•Transporting—hemoglobin moves oxygen•Structural—collagen makes up skin•Enzymatic—amylase breaks down starch•Signaling—insulin tells cells to take in sugar

Lipids (fats)• Several kinds

• Unsaturated• Saturated• Trans fats

Which are healthiest? Least healthy??

HEALTHIEST—unsaturated

LESS HEALTHY—saturated

THE WORST!!!—trans fats

What it looks like• Look for zig-zag TAILS (fatty acid chains)

Unsaturated Fats• NOT saturated in hydrogen (at least one double bond)

Saturated Fats• SATURATED in hydrogen (no double bonds in chains)

Trans Fats

Created in a LABORATORY—chemists turn liquid fats into more stable solid fats

Unsaturated fats in foods• Usually LIQUID at room temp• Mostly from VEGETABLE SOURCES

Saturated fats in foods• Usually SOLID at room temp• Mostly from ANIMAL SOURCES (less legs is better!)

Trans fats in food

Look on label for “partially hydrogenated oils”—0 g trans fats does NOT mean NO trans trans fats!!!

Elements in Lipids

Hydrogen

Oxygen

Carbon

Function of Lipids• Part of cell membrane • Needed to make hormones• Provide long term energy storage

Indicator

Carbohydrates• Referred to as “carbs”—their ONLY job is to give you

energy—can be small/simple or much more complex

Monosaccharides (simple sugars)• “one sugar”—each is a SINGLE RING

Examples of monosaccharides

GLUCOSE FRUCTOSE

Indicator

Benedict’s

Dissacharides• “Two sugars”—double rings