Biomolecules

Definition of Biomolecules - All molecules of the living organisms or chemicals of living organisms which are functional within them are known as biomolecules. It is associated with almost 1000 types of chemical reaction in animal cell. Different types of chemicals present in the cells are called cellular pools. Almost about 5000 chemicals can occur in cells. According to their different size biomolecules are of mainly two types.

Macromolecules –  Macromolecules are large sized, complex molecules of high molecular weight that are commonly formed due to condensation or polymerisation of repeated units of micromolecules. Examples of micro-molecules are glycogen, starch, inulin, cellulose, called, chitin, pectins etc.

Micromolecules - Micromolecules are small sized, simple molecules with low molecular weight. Example of micromolecules are water, minerals, sugars, lipids, amino acids.

Means the organic molecules which must contains carbon, hydrogen atoms are called biomolecules. Biomolecules can be of different types. They are –

1. Carbohydrate molecules - Carbohydrate molecules are made up of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen and in some cases may be other element or groups are attached. It can be of single chain or branching. Different types of carbohydrates are –

Monosaccharide - These are monomers of sugar that cannot be hydrolyzed into further smaller unit. Example is glucose, fructose etc

Disaccharides - This type of carbohydrates are made up of two same or different monomers of carbohydrates. Examples is glucose and fructose together form sucrose.

Polysaccharides - This molecule of carbohydrates made up of more than two or many  different molecules of sugar. Examples of polysaccharides are hexose, heptoses, Pentose etc.

Other polysaccharides - Some other polysaccharides are there which is combined with other element or compound of the cell.

2. Amino acid molecules - Amino acids are the basic units of protein. Different amino acids are combined in different ways to form different protein. They are basically acidic, neutral, alcoholic, sulpher containing, aromatic,. Heterocyclic. Aliphatic amino acids are of four types - monoaminocarboxilic acid, diaminocarboxylic acid, diaminomonocarboxilic acid.

3. Fatty acid molecules - These are made up of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen in the molecules, where ratio oh hydrogen and oxygen are less than water.

Lipids – Esters of fatty acids and alcohol. They are saturated and unsaturated fatty acids.

Waxes - bee wax, lanolin, plant waxes etc.

Phospholipid - Lecithin, cephalin, glycolipids etc.

Sphingolipids - Cerebrosides, gangliosides.

Sterols - Cholesterol

Terpenes - Rubber, camphor, menthol, carotenes, xanthophylls.

Prostaglandins - Different hormones like C20 unsaturated fatty acid formed from arachidonic acid.

4. Different complex biomolecules - This are some types of molecules which combined with either same kind of different molecules or different kinds of molecules. As a result they form complex compound. Examples of complex compound are sphingolipids, sphingomyelin etc.

5. Nucleotides - Penrose sugar, ribose, deoxyribose occurs in nucleotides and nucleic acids.

6. Nucleotisides - Nucleotides are compounds that formed from nitrogen bases and Pentose sugar. Uracil produce nucleoside with only ribose sugar and thiamine forms the same with only deoxyribose sugar.

7. Nitrogen bases - Nitrogen bases are of two types. One is purines and another is pyrimidine. Purine is consists of adenine and guanine. Whereas pyrimidine is consists of thymine, cytosine and in some cases (RNA) uracil.

Eleventh Grade

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