Organic Chemistry : Biological Molecules

Study concepts, example questions & explanations for Organic Chemistry

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Example Questions

Example Question #1 : Help With Organic Carbohydrates

What is the name of the following carbohydrate?

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Possible Answers:

Alpha-D-galactopyranose

Alpha-L-glucopyranose

Beta-D-galactofuranose

Alpha-L-galactopyranose

Beta-D-galactofuranose

Correct answer:

Alpha-D-galactopyranose

Explanation:

Stereochemistry from second to fifth carbon is R, S, S, R, which indicates D-galactose. The Haworth structure is a six-membered ring, so the molecule is in its pyranose form. The molecule has its anomeric hydroxyl group pointing down, so it's the alpha anomer.

Example Question #2 : Help With Organic Carbohydrates

What is the name of the following molecule?

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Possible Answers:

Alpha-D-glucopyranose

Beta-L-glucofuranose

Alpha-D-glucofuranose

Beta-D-galactofuranose

Alpha-L-galactopyranose

Correct answer:

Alpha-D-glucofuranose

Explanation:

Stereochemistry from second to fifth carbon is R, S, R, R, which indicates D-glucose. The Haworth structure is a five-membered ring, so the molecule is in its furanose form. The molecule has its anomeric hydroxyl group pointing down, so it's the alpha anomer.

Example Question #11 : Help With Organic Carbohydrates

Which of the following correctly describes a reducing sugar?

Possible Answers:

A reducing sugar has a hemiacetal/hemiketal group when in its cyclic form, and is able to reduce other chemicals (while itself being oxidized).

None of these

A reducing sugar has a hemiacetal/hemiketal group when in its cyclic form, and is able to oxidize other chemicals (while itself being reduced).

A reducing sugar has an acetal/ketal group when in its cyclic form, and is able to oxidize other chemicals (while itself being reduced).

A reducing sugar has an acetal/ketal group when in its cyclic form, and is able to reduce other chemicals (while itself being oxidized).

Correct answer:

A reducing sugar has a hemiacetal/hemiketal group when in its cyclic form, and is able to reduce other chemicals (while itself being oxidized).

Explanation:

A reducing sugar contains a hemiacetal/hemiketal group which means that in its open chain form it contains a ketone/aldehyde group. Sugars containing a free aldehyde group can be oxidized to a carboxylic acid, while sugars containing a free ketone group must be tautomerized to an aldehyde group through an ene-diol intermediate (shown below), and this can be oxidized to a carboxylic acid.

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Reducing sugars are detectable with the formation of either a precipitate or a solution color change after addition of Tollens' Reagent, Benedict's solution, or Fehling's solution. 

Example Question #271 : Organic Chemistry

Alpha-D-glucopyranose:

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Glucose (pictured) is defined as which of the following?

Possible Answers:

Ketohexose

Ketopentose

Aldopentose

Triose phosphate

Aldohexose

Correct answer:

Aldohexose

Explanation:

Glucose in its open chain form (shown below), has a free aldehyde group (an aldose), and it contains six carbons (a hexose). Together, glucose is shown to be an aldohexose.

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Example Question #21 : Biological Molecules

Alpha-D-glucopyranose

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Which of the labelled carbon atoms is the anomeric carbon?

Possible Answers:

D

A

C

B

E

Correct answer:

A

Explanation:

The anomeric carbon is formed from the original carbonyl carbon in the straight-chain form of the molecule being attacked by a hydroxyl group to form a hemiacetal. This is seen as a carbon that is bonded to two oxygen atoms. In the case of glucose, the carbon labelled A is a hemiacetal, and is considered to be the anomeric carbon.

Example Question #14 : Help With Organic Carbohydrates

Shown below is the structure of a sugar molecule.

Sugar

Which of the following is the most appropriate classification of this sugar?

Possible Answers:

Ketoheptose

Aldoheptose

Ketohexose

Aldohexose

Correct answer:

Aldoheptose

Explanation:

In this question, we're given the structure of a sugar molecule, and we're asked to identify which answer choice represents the correct identification of this molecule.

To answer this question, there are two things we need to look at. For one, we need to determine whether it is an aldehyde sugar (aldose) or a ketone sugar (ketose). The first carbon atom in the molecule (shown at the very top in the image) is shown as . This means that the carbon contains a double bond to the oxygen. Furthermore, since it also contains a bond to a hydrogen, we can conclude that this is an aldehyde functional group. Consequently, we know that this must be an aldose sugar.

Next, we need to look at the number of carbon atoms in the molecule. In the image shown in the question, there are a total of seven carbon atoms. Thus, this sugar would be classified as a heptose sugar (seven carbons) rather than a hexose sugar (six carbons).

Putting these two pieces of information together, we know that the sugar is both an aldose and a heptose. Therefore, this sugar is an aldoheptose.

Example Question #1 : Help With Organic Proteins

Which of the following is an example of a basic amino acid?

Possible Answers:

Lysine

Aspartic acid

Leucine

Alanine

Tyrosine

Correct answer:

Lysine

Explanation:

Lysine's R-group includes an amine (-NH2), which can be ionized by picking up a hydrogen. This ability classifies lysine as basic.

Example Question #1 : Help With Organic Proteins

Which of the following amino acids can participate in the formation of a disulfide bridge?

Possible Answers:

Phenylalanine

Tyrosine

Aspartic acid

Cysteine

Alanine

Correct answer:

Cysteine

Explanation:

Cysteine's R-group contains a sulfhydryl group (-SH), which can participate in the formation of a disulfide bridge in a protein's tertiary and/or quaternary structure. Cysteine is the only amino acid to contain a sulfur atom.

Example Question #3 : Help With Organic Proteins

Which of the following amino acids is the only one to contain a side chain that results in an achiral amino acid?

Possible Answers:

Lysine

Aspartic acid

Alanine

Glycene

Correct answer:

Glycene

Explanation:

The only achiral amino acid is Glycene. Glycene's side chain is simply a hydrogen. Because a hydrogen already exists on the fundamental structure of an amino acid backbone, a side chain of a single hydrogen atom causes glycene to be achiral.

Example Question #4 : Help With Organic Proteins

How many essential amino acids are there?

Possible Answers:

Ten

Nine

Zero

Twenty

Twelve

Correct answer:

Nine

Explanation:

The nine essential amino acids are valine, leucine, isoleucine, histidine, phenylalanine, tryptophan, methionine, threonine, and lysine. These amino acids must be consumed in the diet, since they cannot be synthesized by adult humans.

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