Principles of Biology : Quiz 4 Study Guide


We will take Quiz 4 on Wednesday, Sept. 17. I recommend that you answer these questions yourself or with classmates. This not a graded assignment, nothing is to be turned in. These questions are just to help you prepare for this quiz.
Reading: You should read Chapter 3 in the text book on The Chemical Building Blocks of Life. Also, this quiz will cover some material from Lab 3 and Lab 4 as indicated in the questions below.

Modified: Monday, September 15, 7:15 p.m. Look for strikeout lines, for elimination, and green lines for additions/clarifications.

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Questions for this quiz.

1) What are the four major types of biomolecules?
2) For each type, list the chemical properties of the class (including the names of any monomers), the major functions for each class, and a couple of representative examples of each class.
In fact, use the following table as a guide to your study:
Type of Biomolecule
Primary Function(s) - Specific Examples
Monomers or parts of the molecule
Chemical Features of the Group






























3) What is the difference between a "qualitative test" and a "quantitative test?"
4) What tests did we do in lab (Lab 3) and which classes of biomolecules do each test for?
5) Distinguish between starch, cellulose, chitin?
6) What is a "hydolysis reaction?" You should look this up, compare it to the question below (#7), and see if they make sense.
7) What is a "dehydration synthesis?"
8) List the six functions of proteins as given in the text.
9) What are the four levels of protein structure? Give an example of each. What are "protein motifs" and  "protein domains?"
10) What is an "R" group?
11) What makes a molecule an "amino acid?"
12)  How are lipids defined?
13) What are the most important structural elements of cell membranes?
14) How are all these molecules made possible by the properties of carbon atoms?

  Animations on Aris :  We will discuss these briefly Wednesday in class, but they will be on the quiz and I expect you to study them before Wednesday.
Sucrase
15) What is "sucrose" and what is it made of?
16) What is "sucrase" and what does it do?
17) What is "a catalyst?" an "enzyme?"
18) What is the enzyme-substrate complex?
19) What factors affect enzyme action?

DNA
20) What is the overall structure of a DNA molecule?
21) What are the component parts?
22) In general terms, what is the repeating structure in DNA?
23) What is the function of DNA? (see next video for a more complete answer to this question)
24) What is Chargaffs "rule" of base proportions?
25) Given a single strand of DNA (say ATTCGGCATC) what does the corresponding "antiparallel" strand look like?

Simple Gene Expression
26) What is "transcription?"
27) What is "translation?"
28) What are the relationships between DNA, genes and proteins?

Mechanism of Steroid Hormones
29) What class of compounds are steroids?
30) Since they are not water-soluble, how are they able to be transported in blood?
31) What happens to them inside the cell?
32) What effect does the steroid/protein complex have when it binds to a region of the DNA?


Last Update : Sept. 15, 7:30 p.m.