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CIE IGCSE Biology Your notes
4.1 Biological Molecules
Contents
4.1.1 Chemicals & Life
4.1.2 Food Tests
4.1.3 DNA Structure
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4.1.1 Chemicals & Life
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Chemical Elements
Most of the molecules in living organisms fall into three categories: carbohydrates, proteins and lipids
These all contain carbon and so are described as organic molecules
Chemical Elements Table
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Large Molecules are Made from Smaller Molecules
Carbohydrates Your notes
Long chains of simple sugars
Glucose is a simple sugar ( a monosaccharide)
When 2 glucose molecules join together maltose is formed (a disaccharide)
When lots of glucose molecules join together starch, glycogen or cellulose can form (a
polysaccharide)
Glycogen, cellulose and starch are all made from glucose molecules
Fats
Most fats (lipids) in the body are made up of triglycerides
Their basic unit is 1 glycerol molecule chemically bonded to 3 fatty acid chains
The fatty acids vary in size and structure
Lipids are divided into fats (solids at room temperature) and oils (liquids at room temperature)
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Structure of a triglyceride
Proteins
Long chains of amino acids
There are about 20 different amino acids
They all contain the same basic structure but the ‘R’ group is different for each one
When amino acids are joined together a protein is formed
The amino acids can be arranged in any order, resulting in hundreds of thousands of different proteins
Even a small difference in the order of the amino acids results in a different protein being formed
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General amino acid structure
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Amino acids join together to form proteins
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4.1.2 Food Tests
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Food tests in biology
Food test for glucose (a reducing sugar)
Add Benedict's solution into sample solution in test tube
Heat at 60 - 70 °c in water bath for 5 minutes
Take test tube out of water bath and observe the colour
A positive test will show a colour change from blue to orange or brick red
Use this image
The Benedict's test for glucose
Food test for starch
We can use iodine to test for the presence or absence of starch in a food sample.
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Use this image
The iodine test for starch
Add drops of iodine solution to the food sample
A positive test will show a colour change from orange-brown to blue-black
Use this image
Testing a potato to prove the presence of starch
Food test for protein
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Add drops of Biuret solution to the food sample
A positive test will show a colour change from blue to violet / purple
Your notes
Use this image
The Biuret test for protein
Food test for lipids
Food sample is mixed with 2cm3 of ethanol and shaken
The ethanol is added to an equal volume of cold water
A positive test will show a cloudy emulsion forming
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Your notes
Use this image
The ethanol test for lipids
Food test for vitamin C
Add 1cm3 of DCPIP solution to a test tube
Add a small amount of food sample (as a solution)
A positive test will show the blue colour of the dye disappearing
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Your notes
Use this image
The DCPIP test for vitamin C
Exam Tip
When describing food tests in exam answers, make sure you give the starting colour of the solution
and the colour it changes to for a positive result.
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4.1.3 DNA Structure
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Structure of a DNA Molecule: Extended
DNA, or deoxyribonucleic acid, is the molecule that contains the instructions for the growth and
development of all organisms
It consists of two strands of DNA wound around each other in what is called a double helix
DNA, chromosomes and the nucleus
The individual units of DNA are called nucleotides
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A nucleotide
All nucleotides contain the same phosphate and deoxyribose sugar, but differ from each other in the
base attached
There are four different bases, Adenine (A), Cytosine (C), Thymine (T) and Guanine (G)
The bases on each strand pair up with each other, holding the two strands of DNA in the double helix
The bases always pair up in the same way:
Adenine always pairs with Thymine (A-T)
Cytosine always pairs with Guanine (C-G)
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DNA base pairs
The phosphate and sugar section of the nucleotides form the ‘backbone’ of the DNA strand (like the
sides of a ladder) and the base pairs of each strand connect to form the rungs of the ladder
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The DNA helix is made from two strands of DNA held together by hydrogen bonds
It is this sequence of bases that holds the code for the formation of proteins
Exam Tip
You do not need to learn the names of the bases, just their letter. Make sure you know which bonds
with which, as this is the most commonly asked question about this topic.
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