The Effect of Indicators on the presence of Macromolecules in a McMush slurry
by
ranikb (student)
The Effect of Indicators on the presence of Macromolecules in a “McMush” slurry
10 October, 2012
Rani Bhangu
- The Effect of Indicators on the presence of macromolecules in a McMush
- Design
- Are carbohydrates, lipids, and proteins present in the McMush?
- Introduction
“The organic compounds found in living organisms are lipids, carbohydrates, proteins, and nucleic acids. These macromolecules are large carbon-based structures. Common foods, which often consist of plant material or substances derived from animals, are combinations of these organic compounds.
The macromolecules are assembled by joining several smaller units, called monomers, together through a chemical reaction called dehydration synthesis or condensation. The resulting polymer can be disassembled/ broken down into monomers through the complimentary process called hydrolysis” (Lazar, 1).
Background
Carbohydrates are made of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen atoms (CHO). In the carbohydrate there are two hydrogen atoms for every one oxygen atom present. The monomers for carbohydrates are referred to as monosaccharides. When many monosaccharides are chained together the resulting molecule is called a polysaccharide. Carbohydrates are used by living organisms as an important source of energy. Examples of carbohydrates include glucose, fructose, sucrose, galactose, ribose, deoxyribose, cellulose and chitin.
Lipids are made of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen (CHO) is not 1:2:1. Instead, lipids have a much higher number of carbons and hydrogens with few oxygen atoms present. The nonpolar bonds that form between the carbon and hydrogen atoms of a lipid cause them to be hydrophobic, or water-repellent, molecules. This explains why water and oil do not mix. The large number of carbon to hydrogen bonds also serves to make lipids energy rich storage molecules. One gram of lipid stores twice as much energy as one gram of a carbohydrate. Lipids from animals are referred to as fats (saturated fats) and are solids at room temperature, while those found in plants are referred to as oils (unsaturated fats) which are liquids at room temperature. Fats and oils are made of smaller units called triglycerides which are composed of a glycerol and three fatty acid molecules. One important relative of true lipids are the phospholipids. Phospholipids differ in structure from regular lipids in that phospholipids are made of a glycerol and two fatty acids joined by a phosphate group. This arrangement makes phospholipid molecules have both hydrophilic and hydrophobic regions. This feature makes phospholipids an ideal structural component of the plasma membrane of cells. Steroids are another significant group of lipids. They differ slightly in structure because the carbon atoms are arranged in four rings. Examples of steroids include cholesterol, estrogen, testosterone and morphine.
