What is Biochemistry?

Biochemistry is the branch of science that

explores the chemical processes within and
related to living organisms.
Favorite food <3
Biological Molecules

● Building blocks
● Molecules necessary for any living things on
Earth
Biomolecules
Macromolecules
● Carbohydrates
● Proteins
● Lipids
● Nucleic Acids
Monomer
● Building blocks
● A large substance is made up of a substance which is
called monomer
Carbohydrates
“Hydrates of Carbon”

● stoichiometric formula (CH2O)n, n is the number of carbons in the

molecule
● formula also explains the origin of the term “carbohydrate”: the
components are carbon (“carbo”) and the components of water
(hence, “hydrate”).
● Most abundant biomolecules in nature.
● they are now defined as polyhydroxy aldehydes and ketones
Monosaccharides
● Monomer of Carbohydrates (means it makes up carbohydrates)
● Monosaccharides are the common base unit of all carbohydrate
molecules. (the word “saccharide” is derived from the Greek
sakcharon, meaning “sugar”).
● They are white, crystalline solids that contain a single aldehyde or
ketone functional group.
Monosaccharides
● They are subdivided into two classes aldoses and ketoses on the
basis of whether they are aldehydes or ketones.
● also called "simple sugars“
● Most monosaccharide names end with the suffix –ose.
Monosaccharides
● Most monosaccharide names end
with the suffix –ose.
● If the sugar has an aldehyde group
(the functional group with the
structure R-CHO), it is known as
an aldose
● if it has a ketone group (the
functional group with the structure
RC(=O)R′), it is known as a
ketose.
Characteristics of Monosaccharides
Characteristics:
● Soluble in water
● They are also classified as a triose, tetrose, pentose, hexose, or heptose
on the basis of whether they contain three, four, five, six, or seven carbon
atoms
Triose
● is a monosaccharide, or simple sugar, containing three
carbon atoms

D-Glyceraldehyde Dihydroxyacetone L-Glyceraldehyde

Note: D,L Monosaccharides (Dextro and Levo)

Tetrose
● a monosaccharide with four
carbon atoms. They have either
an aldehyde functional group in
position 1 (aldotetroses) or a
ketone functional group in
position 2 (ketotetroses)
Pentoses
● monosaccharide molecules with five carbon
atoms.
● pentoses can also be further divided into two
groups as aldopentoses and ketopentoses.
● Ribose, xylose, arabinose, lyxose, are
aldopentoses.
● Ribulose, xylulose are ketopentose
Pentoses

● Aldopentoses

● Ketopentoses
Hexoses
● A sugar or saccharide containing six carbon
Glucose
● One of the most important monosacharride
● One of the main sources of calories
● Can cross blood -brain barrier which nourishes
the brain
Fructose
● Fruit sugar
● Commonly found in honey, fruits and
vegetables
Galactose
● Known as milk sugar
Isomers
Isomers
● compounds that have same chemical formula but different
structures.
Examples
● Fructose
● Glucose
● Mannose
● galactose
Epimers
Epimers
● Define as a carbohydrate isomers that
different in configuration around only one
specific carbon atom (chiral center).
Examples
● Glucose and galactose C-4 Epimer
● Glucose and mannose C-2 Epimer
Glucose and
maltose are the
epimers with
respect to C-2

Glucose and
galactose are the
epimers with
respect to C-4
Disaccharides
● Disaccharides consist of (exactly) TWO (2) monosaccharides join
together.
● sugars composed of 2 monosaccharides
● form when two monosaccharides undergo a dehydration reaction
Disaccharides
Characteristics:
● Soluble in water
● A glycosidic bond can form between any hydroxyl group on the
monosaccharide.
● a glycosidic bond or glycosidic linkage is a type of covalent bond that joins
a carbohydrate (sugar) molecule to another group.
Disaccharides
● Sucrose is formed when a monomer of
glucose and a monomer of fructose are
joined in a dehydration reaction to form
a glycosidic bond.
● In the process, a water molecule is lost.
By convention, the carbon atoms in a
monosaccharide are numbered from the
terminal carbon closest to the carbonyl
group. In sucrose, a glycosidic linkage is
formed between carbon 1 in glucose and
carbon 2 in fructose.
Common Disaccharides
Sucrose (Saccharose)

● glucose + fructose
● table sugar
● Found in fruits and vegetables (sugar cane and
sugar beet having the highest qualities)
Common Disaccharides
Lactose

● galactose + glucose
● Formed together by 𝛽1-4 glycosidic bond
● Found in milk of mammals (cow and breast milk of human)
● synthetic (man-made) sugar that is not absorbed by the body
but is broken down in the colon into products that absorb
water into the colon, thus softening stools.
● Its primary use is to treat constipation.
● It is also used to reduce blood ammonia levels in persons with
liver disease since lactulose absorbs ammonia into the colon
Common Disaccharides
Maltose

● glucose + glucose
● Malt sugar
● Formed together by 𝛼 1-4 glycosidic bond
● Found in molasses that can be used for the fermentation of
beer
● Found also in some cereals and candies.
● It is a product of starch digestions and may be purified from
barley and other grains.
Simple sugar whether they are natural and added sugars are mixtures
of monossacharide and dissacharides

Example

Fructose
Glucose
Galactose
Maltose
Simple sugar whether they are natural and added sugars are mixtures
of monossacharide and dissacharides

Example

Fructose

Glucose

Sucrose
Trehalose
● glucose + glucose Trehalose is also known as
● tremalose or mycose.
● It is a natural alpha-linke disaccharide with extremely high water
retention properties.
● In nature, it helps plants and animals reduce long periods without
water
Cellobiose
● glucose + glucose
● Cellobiose is a hydrolysis product of cellulose or cellulose-rich
materials, such as paper or cotton.
● formed by linking two beta-glucose molecules by a ß(1→4) bond.
● Amylase
● Lactase
● Sucrase
● Maltase
Polyssacharides
● are sugar polymers containing more than 20 or so
monosaccharide units, and some have hundreds or
thousands of units.
● Most abundant carbohydrate in food
● long chain of monosaccharides linked by glycosidic
bonds
● Homopolysaccharides and heteropolysaccharides
Starches
● stored form of sugars in plants
● made up of a mixture of amylose
and amylopectin
● Important source of calories
found in foods (rice, potatoes,
wheat and maize.
● Sugar molecules that human
Intestinal enzyme can
breakdown
● Not sweet (don’t activate the
taste bud unlike simple sugar)
Starches
Amylose
● starch formed by unbranched chains of glucose monomers (only 𝛼 1-4
linkages)
● it is poorly soluble in water and slowly digestible.
Starches
Amylopectin
● branched polysaccharide (𝛼 1-4 linkages
and 𝛼 1-6 linkages at the branch points).
● it is more soluble in water and more
easily digestible than amylose.
● Branching occurs every 20-30 glucose
residues
Dietary Fibers
Carbohydrates that intestinal
enzymes cannot breakdown
● Non-Digestible
● Have molecules that are
resisting to human enzymes
● Benefits:
○ Critical, slows down the
absorption for simple sugar
○ Helps blood glucose level
○ Good for bowel movement
○ Lowers blood Cholesterol
Glycogen
● is the storage form of glucose in humans and other vertebrates and is made up of
monomers of glucose.
● Glycogen is the animal equivalent of starch and is a highly branched molecule
usually stored in liver and muscle cells.
● Whenever blood glucose levels decrease, glycogen is broken down to release
glucose in a process known as glycogenolysis

Branching occur
every 8-12 glucose
residues
Cellulose
● is the most abundant natural
biopolymer.
● The cell wall of plants is mostly made
of cellulose;
● this provides structural support to the
cell.
● Wood and paper are mostly cellulosic
in nature.
● Cellulose is made up of glucose
monomers that are linked by β 1-4
glycosidic bonds
Functions of Carbohydrates in the Body
● Carbohydrates provides your body with energy. Your cells convert
carbohydrates into the fuel molecule ATP through a process called
cellular respiration.
● They Also Provide Stored Energy
● Carbohydrate (fibers) promotes good digestive health by reducing
constipation and lowering the risk of digestive tract diseases.
Functions of Carbohydrates in Animals

Insects have a hard outer exoskeleton made of chitin, a type of polysaccharide

Chitin
 Cellular Respiration
This is a biological pathway where an organic molecule
(such as glucose) reacts with oxygen gas to produce carbon dioxide
and water. It aims to produce adenosine triphosphate (ATP)
molecules that are utilized for the production of energy in the body.

It includes the biological processes:

- Glycolysis
- Citric Acid Cycle
- Electron Transport Chain
ATP MOLECULES
Pyruvate Dehydrogenase Multienzyme Complex