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Example Questions
Example Question #47 : Macromolecule Fundamentals
Which type of DNA mutation is characterized by a base change that results in an early stop codon instead of the intended amino acid?
Nonsense mutation
Missense mutation
Frameshift mutation
Silent mutation
Nonsense mutation
Stop the nonsense! When a base change occurs but results in the same amino acid being read, this is considered a silent mutation. When a base change results into a different amino acid (concervative-new amino acid is similar in chemical structure), this is a missense mutation. When a Frame shift mutation occurs, the change results in misreading of all nucleotides downstream, usually resulting in a nonfunctional protein.
Example Question #51 : Amino Acids And Proteins
At a physiological pH of 3, what is the net charge on glutamate (relevant values given)?
Glutamate is an acidic amino acid. At a pH below 2.2 (acidic conditions), the side chain, the amino group, and the carboxyl backbone would all be protonated (+1 net charge). At a pH above 9.7 (basic conditions), all of those groups would be deprotonated (negative 2 net charge).
In the situation we are given, the pH is 3, which is above the , but below the . The carboxyl group on the backbone is therefore deprotonated, but not the carboxyl side chain. The amino backbone also remains protonated in these still acidic conditions. Overall, the net charge must then be zero.
To simplify this problem, remember that at any pH above the of a given group (basic conditions), that group will be deprotonated. On the other hand, at any pH below the of a given group (acid conditions), that group will be protonated.
Example Question #52 : Amino Acids And Proteins
Which of the following amino acids contains sulfur?
Tyrosine
Glutamine
Methionine
Phenylalanine
Asparagine
Methionine
Methionine and cysteine are the only amino acids that contain sulfur.
Example Question #51 : Amino Acids And Proteins
Disulfide bridges are formed between __________.
two methionine amino acids
a cysteine and an asparagine amino acid
two asparagine amino acids
two cysteine amino acids
a methionine and a cysteine amino acid
two cysteine amino acids
Only two cysteine amino acids can come together to form a disulfide bridge. This disulfide bridge is a covalent bond. Disulfide bridges are a component of tertiary structure in proteins. As a side note, the name of a cysteine amino acid changes to cystine after a disulfide bridge is formed.
Example Question #81 : Fundamental Macromolecules And Concepts
Which of the following amino acids is nonpolar?
Cysteine
Threonine
Serine
Glycine
Asparagine
Glycine
Only glycine is nonpolar. The rest of the answer choices are polar. Remember that being nonpolar implies that the substance is hydrophobic and, hence, insoluble in water. Besides methionine, you will notice that the rest of the nonpolar and nonaromatic amino acids have R-groups composed solely of carbon and hydrogen. Polarity of amino acids is quite important when looking at the tertiary, or three dimensional, structure of a protein.
Example Question #53 : Amino Acids And Proteins
Which of the following amino acids is aromatic?
Serine
Tyrosine
Threonine
Histidine
Proline
Tyrosine
There are only three aromatic amino acids. They are phenylalanine, tyrosine, and tryptophan. Histidine has a positively charged R-group. Proline is a nonpolar amino acid. Serine is a polar amino acid. Threonine is a polar amino acid.
Example Question #82 : Fundamental Macromolecules And Concepts
Which of the following is a false statement about amino acids?
Amino acids are joined together with peptide bonds.
Glycine is an achiral amino acid.
There are three aromatic amino acids.
The value of the amino group is around 2 for all amino acids.
All amino acids in biological proteins are L stereoisomers.
The value of the amino group is around 2 for all amino acids.
The value of the amino groups in amino acids are around 9. On the other hand, the value of the carboxyl groups of amino acids are around 2. All biologically relevant amino acids are indeed found only in the L stereoisomer formation. There are three aromatic amino acids: phenylalanine, tyrosine, and tryptophan. All amino acids are joined together with a planar, rigid peptide bond. Glycine is the only achiral amino acid. This is due to the hydrogen found in the R-group.
Example Question #55 : Amino Acids And Proteins
Which level of protein structure is described by the association of multiple subunits into a functional multimeric protein?
0 degree structure
Primary Structure
Tertiary Structure
Quarternary structure
Secondary Structure
Quarternary structure
Quarternary structure is the association of multiple polypeptide chains into a functional protein. Not all proteins have this level of protein structure. Subunits within the quarternary structure are held together by noncovalent bonds and disulfide bonds.
Example Question #51 : Amino Acids And Proteins
Which groups on a pair of amino acids must react to form a peptide bond?
The amino group of one and the carboxyl group of another
Both amino groups
The R-group of one and the amino group of the other
Both carboxyl groups
The amino group of one and the carboxyl group of another
A peptide bond is the chemical bond formed between two amino acids to create a polypeptide. The carboxyl group of one amino acid reacts with the amino group of the other amino acid, releasing a molecule of water. This is known as a dehydration reaction.
Example Question #57 : Amino Acids And Proteins
Which of the following can be stored for future use in the human body?
Fatty acids only
Amino acids and glucose
Fatty acids, glucose, and amino acids
Fatty acids and glucose
Glucose only
Fatty acids and glucose
Glucose can be stored as glycogen, mostly in the liver, and fatty acids are stored in adipose cells. Amino acids, though, can not be stored for future anabolic use in the human body. Therefore, any time there is an excess of amino acids, they are broken down into their constituent parts so that they may be recycled into other molecules.
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