Adapted by: K.

Donley

Sarah Cates Per. 3

Identification of Macromolecules Lab

Purpose: To learn the structure and function of carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, and nucleic acids.
Directions: Get in groups of 3-4 and complete the following worksheet. You will need to get toothpicks,
4 colors of playdoh, a computer, and a textbook.

Carbon
1. Go to the on-line activities in your on-line textbook. (If the Internet is down, Mrs. D has CDRoms.) Do the activities for chapter 4 (4A-4C). What are the 3 types of isomers and define their
differences. Make a table of the functional groups listing their formula and properties.
Structural isomers which are different when it comes to covalent partnerships ,
geometrical
isomers which have a different arrangement of atoms within itself , and enantiomers which are mirror
images of each other.
Structure

Function

Hydroxyl

-OH

Forms hydrogen bonds with water molecules

and dissolving organic compounds

Carbonyl

Carbon atom joined to a Hydrogen atom

through a double bond

Found in sugars to give the sugar its structure

Carboxyl

an Oxygen atom double bonded to a

Carbon atom which is bonded to an -OH

has acidic properties and most commonly acts

as a carbohydrate ion

Amino

Nitrogen atom bonded to 2 Hydrogen

atoms

acts as a base with the ability to pick up an Hmolecule

Sulfhydry
l

Sulfur atom bonded to a Hydrogen atom

2 Sulfhydryl groups can react causing a

covalent bond that helps stabilize protein
structure

Phosphate

1 Phosphorus atom is bonded to 4

Carbon atoms

Give a negative charge to he molecule which it

is a part of

Methyl

1 Carbon bonded to 3 hydrogen aroms

effects shape and function of sex hormones

effects expression of genes

2. Use the computer on-line activities and your textbook for chapter 5 to complete the rest of the
lab.

Carbohydrates

Stamp:

1. What is a carbohydrate? List some examples.

A carbohydrate is a sugar or a polymer of sugar . Some examples are glucose and sucrose.
Glucose is by far the most common example of a carbohydrate.

2. What is the structure of glucose? Create a glucose molecule with playdoh and toothpicks. C, H,
and O should be represented by a different color and toothpicks should represent the bonds.
Draw the structure you have created below.

3. Draw a disaccharide and label the bond between the 2 sugar molecules.

4. What is the common name of the disaccharide you created above? Give 2 other examples of
disaccharides and the names of the 2 monosaccharides that compose them. Sucrose. 2 other
examples are lactose and maltose. Sucrose is composed of glucose and fructose, lactose is
composed of glucose and galactose, and maltose is composed of 2 molecules of glucose.
5. What is the bond called that links 2 monosaccharides together? What is the difference between
an alpha and beta bond?.
A glycosidic linkage which is a covalent bond that forms through a dehydration reaction. an
alpha bond is a bond that forms down and a beta bond is a bond that forms up.
6. Why cant cats and dogs digest cellulose?
They do not produce the proper enzymes to break down cellulose due to celluloses beta bonds.
7. What are some common polysaccharides and what are their functions?
Glycogen which releases glucose when there is a low sugar intake. Cellulose is a structural
molecule which helps build cell walls.
8. Why are carbohydrates important in the diet? What are the functions of carbohydrates? They are
important in diets because they are fuel and building material . They also help maintain
homeostasis in the body.

Lipids

Stamp:

1. What is a lipid? List some examples.

Fatty acids that are insoluble in water. Cholesterol is the most common fat but some other
examples include hormones such as estrogen or testosterone.
2. What 2 molecules compose a simple lipid? Create them with playdoh and toothpicks and draw
them below. Carbon and Hydrogen.

3. What are the functions of lipids? Why are they important in the diet?
Functions of lipids include storing energy in the form of fat, steroids and hormones control
structure some help protecting the cell. They are important in the diet because they create energy stores
that help keep humans functioning
4. What is the difference between a saturated v. an unsaturated lipid? Which is healthier?
At room temperature a saturated fats molecules are close enough together to form a solid( think
butter) and at room temperature unsaturated fats molecules have kinks that prevent them from bonding
into a solid( think of oils). Unsaturated fats are healthier.
5. What are HDLs and LDLs? Which is healthier? List a disease that is common for people with
high cholesterol. An HDL is a high density lipid while a LDL is a low density lipid. An HDL is
healthier due to the fact that an LDL carries more cholesterol. High cholesterol can cause
cardiovascular issues, diabetes, and high blood pressure.

Proteins

Stamp:

1. What is a protein? Give some examples.

A protein is a commonly found molecule in the body that helps preform nearly every bodily
function. They are all composed of amino acids and some examples are digestive juices and Insulin which
helps regulate sugar found in the blood.

2. Why are proteins important in the diet? What are the functions of proteins?
Proteins are important in the diet because they hep break down food and molecules in order for
the food to be more digestible. Proteins have many different functions that range from regulating blood
sugar to fighting against disease.
3. Create an amino acid with playdoh and toothpicks. Draw it below.

4. How many amino acids are there? How many are essential to the diet?
20. 9 are essential to the diet.
5. What are the 3 categories of amino acids? Give 2 examples of each type.
Non-polar, Polar, and Electrically charged. Non-polar includes Glycine and Valine, Polar includes
Serine and Threonine, and Electrically charged includes Lysine and Histidine.
6. Describe how proteins fold (include primary, secondary, tertiary, and quaternary structures). Why
is the shape of a protein important?
Primary- A single strand consisting of 4 identical polypeptide bonds that consist of about 127
amino acids and is always 127 amino acids long.
Secondary- polypeptide bonds that have fold or creases that contribute to the overall shape. These
folds and coils are what qualify as the secondary structure.
Tertiary- The shapes of the bonds in the secondary structure combined makes the tertiary
structure.
Quaternary- Overall protein structure that results from all previous categories.
Shape is important because shape is key to function.
7. What bonds help stabilize protein shape?
Covalent disulfide bridges
8. Go to the Internet and find the structure of an example protein. Print one per group and label any
distinct folding patterns that you see. Spiral fonds and the actual construction of quaternary
structure

Nucleic Acids

Stamp:

1. What is a nucleic acid? Give 2 examples.

Many nucleotides linked into long stands that are crucial to all living life. Two examples are DNA
and RNA.
2. What 3 molecules compose a nucleotide?
Oxygen Nitrogen, and Carbon
3. List the purines and pyrimidines. What bonds with what? Draw their structures below.
Purines- Adenine and Guanine. Pyrimidines- Cytosine, Thymine, and Uracil.
Guanine to Cytosine and Adenine to Thymine.

4. Draw a picture of DNA with 2 bases on each strand, one base pair should be A and T, the other C
and G. Who discovered the structure of DNA?
Francis Crick

5. What is the function of DNA? What is the function of RNA (mRNA, tRNA, rRNA, and
snRNA)?
DNA carries genetic information that determines the traits of offspring.
RNA acts as a messenger, mRNA directs polypeptide production, tRNA helps decode a message
into proteins, rRNA is the RNA part of a ribosomes that assists with protein synthesis. snRNA assist in
spicing and helps assist in other RNA functions.
6. List the differences between RNA and DNA.
DNA is double stranded while RNA is single stranded. DNA regards more to genetic information
while RNA focuses more on amino acids and sending messages to ribosomes to make proteins. DNA use
thymine while RNA uses uracil.
7. Which came first, RNA or DNA? Why do you think this? Do all organisms have DNA? Why or
why not?
RNA was first. I think this is probably the case because it is what translates DNA coding into
protein structures so without RNA you wouldn't really be able to create something.
Yes all living organisms have DNA because it is what helps prove survival of the fittest and what causes
evolution to occur.
8. What is the difference between mitochondrial DNA and nuclear DNA? Do some research on the
Internet (remember to cite your sources!).
Nuclear DNA is located in the Nucleus and usually has 2 per cell. Mitochondrial DNA is found in
the mitochondria and usually has anywhere from 100-1000 copies per cell. Their structure is also different
in the sense that DNA has open ends and 46 chromosomes that have about 3 billion nucleotides.
Mitochondrial DNA is closed and have above 16000 nucleotides so Nuclear DNA is more complex than
Mitochondrial DNA.

9. What is a plasmid? What organism uses plasmids to its advantage and why is it an advantage?
Why might this advantage be potentially harmful to other organisms?
A small DNA molecule within a cell that can replicate by itself. They are most commonly found
in bacteria and bacteria benefits because having a plasmid helps encourage antibiotic resistance. This is
harmful towards other organisms because these plasmids build up resistances to ways to kill them making
a cure for certain sicknesses more difficult to find.
10. Why do you suppose it is important to take all of the antibiotics in a prescription? What can
happen if you dont take all of the pills correctly? Give an example.
It is important because if you don't then you might not completely kill all of the infection. If you
don't take all of the pills then the remaining molecules will built a resistance to the antibiotics and
become harder to kill. If you have a bad sinus infection and you only take the first 3 days, the
symptoms will go down but then it would come back and you would have to change antibiotics.