Deck 2: The Chemistry of the Cell

Question 1

Because membranes usually are not permeable to polysaccharides,nucleic acids,and proteins,how are cells able to incorporate these molecules?

A)These macromolecules are only incorporated into structures outside the membrane.
B)Macromolecules are broken down extracellularly, and their subunits diffuse through the membrane.
C)Macromolecules are digested extracellularly, and their subunits move through transport proteins.
D)Macromolecules are transported via endocytosis and are digested within the cell.
E)both choices C and D

Answer 1

E

Question 2

Detergents are best able to dissolve oil from fabric or dishes during washing because

A)the positively charged end is associated with a sphere of hydration, while the negatively charged end interacts with the oil droplet.
B)the negatively charged end is associated with a sphere of hydration, while the positively charged end interacts with the oil droplet.
C)the nonpolar end is associated with a sphere of hydration, while the charged end interacts with the oil droplet.
D)the charged end is associated with a sphere of hydration, while the nonpolar end interacts with the oil droplet.
E)because detergents are nonpolar, they increase the size of the oil droplet, allowing the water to be more effective at removing the oil.

Answer 2

D

Question 3

The cell membrane can be described most accurately as

A)permeable to most small molecules but impermeable to larger ones.
B)permeable to only larger molecules.
C)permeable to all molecules.
D)permeable to some molecules and impermeable to others.
E)impermeable to all polar molecules.

Answer 3

D

Question 4

The term amphipathic refers to those molecules that are

A)hydrophilic.
B)hydrophobic.
C)charged at both ends but with opposite charges.
D)nonpolar at both ends.
E)charged at one end and nonpolar at the other.

Question 5

In the lab,you choose to design a simple experiment to distinguish between hydrophilic and hydrophobic substances.You start by adding equal amounts of vinegar and oil to a container.After shaking,the vinegar and oil levels separate,based upon polarity and density.To this you add glucose and sodium citrate and shake again.Where do you expect to find the glucose and sodium citrate in greatest quantities?

A)Both will concentrate in the oil layer.
B)The glucose will concentrate in the vinegar, sodium citrate in the oil.
C)Both will concentrate in the vinegar layer.
D)Sodium citrate will concentrate in the vinegar, glucose in the oil.
E)Both will be uniform throughout both layers.

Question 6

Which of the following is true of an asymmetric carbon atom?

A)Only amino acids have asymmetric carbon atoms.
B)A carbon with hydrogens attached at two locations is usually asymmetric.
C)Methane has an asymmetric carbon.
D)Asymmetric carbon atoms create stereoisomers.
E)Molecules may have only one asymmetric carbon atom.

Question 7

The moon lacks life and varies dramatically in temperature.If we could keep a layer of water spread on the surface of the moon,what effect would it have?

A)Physical conditions would remain the same.
B)Because water has a high heat of vaporization, the temperatures would rise to the upper extremes.
C)The temperatures would drop to the lower extremes.
D)Water would absorb and hold heat and moderate the temperature extremes.
E)Life would be possible, but it would have to withstand these extremes in temperature.

Question 8

Carbon can form ________ covalent bonds.

A)single
B)double
C)triple
D)single and double
E)single, double, and triple

Question 9

Which of the following is a unit of energy?

A)calorie
B)joule
C)watt
D)mole
E)both choices A and B

Question 10

What branch of chemistry deals specifically with living systems?

A)organic chemistry
B)inorganic chemistry
C)biochemistry
D)biological chemistry
E)both choices C and D

Question 11

While synthesizing a new blue pigment,a chemist notices that the new compound congregates between an aqueous (water)environment and a hydrophobic environment.When added to a mixture of oil and water,the pigment creates a blue ring around the droplets of oil.Which of the following statements best describes this new pigment?

A)The pigment is a polar molecule and is forming hydrogen bonds with both the water and oil molecules.
B)The pigment is hydrophilic and will not form hydrophobic bonds with the oil.
C)The pigment is amphipathic, having polar and nonpolar regions.
D)The pigment is neither polar nor nonpolar; it is apolar.
E)The pigment is probably hydrophobic and is attempting to bond with the oil.

Question 12

Ribose has five carbon atoms,of which three are asymmetric.What is the maximum number of stereoisomers that may exist for ribose?

A)2
B)4
C)6
D)8
E)10

Question 13

Why is a selectively permeable membrane so important to living things?

A)It allows cells to attach to adjacent tissues.
B)It provides a good barrier between the inside and outside of the cell.
C)Proteins will avoid a selectively permeable membrane.
D)The membrane may absorb several times its weight in cholesterol.
E)all of the above

Question 14

The cell membrane can be described most accurately as

A)permeable to all small molecules and ions but impermeable to larger ones.
B)permeable to only larger molecules.
C)permeable to some molecules and impermeable to others.
D)impermeable to all polar molecules.
E)permeable to all molecules.

Question 15

Which of the following is not true of hydrocarbons?

A)Octane is a hydrocarbon.
B)Hydrocarbons are insoluble in water.
C)Many hydrocarbons are used in living systems.
D)Only hydrogen atoms are used to complete the valence requirements of carbon.
E)Phospholipids have hydrocarbon tails.

Question 16

Biologically,which of the following is the least important characteristic of water?

A)Water molecules are polar.
B)Water molecules have numerous hydrogen bonds.
C)Water is a good solvent.
D)Water typically contains isotopes of hydrogen.
E)Water has a temperature-stabilizing capacity.

Question 17

Which of the following is false regarding water's specific heat?

A)The specific heat of water is 1.0 calorie per gram.
B)Heat applied to water must initially break a number of hydrogen bonds.
C)Water's high specific heat has a temperature-buffering effect.
D)Water gains and loses heat more slowly than most other solvents do.
E)The specific heat of water is similar to most liquids.

Question 18

Why do polar substances such as NaCl dissolve so readily in water?

A)NaCl is a very dry powder, and the water is able to soak into the salt.
B)The sodium ions repel the negative end of the water molecule.
C)Spheres of hydration form between the water and the ions.
D)The charged ends of the water molecules are able to surround the oppositely charged salt ion.
E)both choices C and D

Question 19

While fishing,a biology student makes the following observations:
1)Water spiders appear to be able walk on the surface of the water.
2)Flat rocks may be made to skip across the water.

A)Water is an excellent solvent.
B)Water molecules create spheres of hydration around solute molecules.
C)Water molecules are cohesive.
D)Water molecules are often associated via hydrogen bonds.
E)both choices C and D

Question 20

Which of the following is not a fundamental property of carbon?

A)Carbon-containing molecules are diverse.
B)Carbon-containing molecules form stereoisomers.
C)Carbon-containing molecules are stable.
D)Carbon has a valence of 4.
E)Carbon atoms are most likely to form ionic bonds with one another.

Question 21

Which of the following was not considered part of the "alphabet of biochemistry" by George Wald?

A)the 20 amino acids
B)the 5 nucleotide bases
C)two sugars
D)three lipids
E)seven proteins

Question 22

Heat shock proteins are

A)only actively synthesized during conditions of intense heat.
B)only observed in prokaryotic cells.
C)molecular chaperones synthesized during times of cellular stress.
D)unique to every organism.
E)present only in certain organelles.

Question 23

Which of the following sequences correctly lists the hierarchical nature of cellular structures,from smallest to largest?

A)organic molecules, supramolecular structures, macromolecules, organelles, cells
B)organelles, organic molecules, supramolecular structures, macromolecules, cells
C)organic molecules, macromolecules, organelles, supramolecular structures, cells
D)organic molecules, macromolecules, supramolecular structures, organelles, cells
E)macromolecules, organic molecules, supramolecular structures, organelles, cells

Question 24

Which of the following molecules is involved with assisted assembly?

A)water molecules
B)helper proteins
C)molecular chaperones
D)tobacco mosaic viruses
E)none of the above

Question 25

Which of the following is not an activated monomer?

A)adenosine triphosphate
B)glucose-6-phosphate
C)aminoacyl tRNA
D)amino acid
E)uracil triphosphate

Question 26

Self-assembly has been utilized or potentially may be used for all of the following applications except

A)nanotechnology.
B)electrical conductivity.
C)biosensors.
D)drug delivery systems.
E)All of the above are examples.

Question 27

Which one of the following biological polymers is mismatched with its monomer?

A)DNA - nucleotide
B)enzyme - amino acid
C)chitin - monosaccharide
D)protein - amino acid
E)cellulose - amino acid

Question 28

The polymerization of different types of macromolecules is similar in many respects.Which of the following principles below is least likely to be common to all methods of polymerization of macromolecules?

A)To be added to the polymer, the monomer must be activated.
B)Macromolecules are synthesized by the addition of monomers.
C)The polymer is directional.
D)Polymerization is passive, requiring little ATP.
E)As monomers are added to the polymer, water is removed from the macromolecule.

Question 29

All of the following are common functional groups found in biological molecules except

A)phosphate groups.
B)carbonyl groups.
C)amino groups.
D)sulfhydryl groups.
E)butyl groups.

Question 30

The hierarchical nature of cellular structure is accurately illustrated in which of the following lists of substances (from smallest to largest)?

A)nucleotides, chromosome, DNA, nucleus, cell
B)cellulose, glucose, cell wall, cell
C)nucleotides, nucleus, DNA, chromosome, cell
D)nucleotides, DNA, chromosome, nucleus, cell
E)protein, membrane, amino acids, chloroplast, cell

Question 31

Which of the following is an informational macromolecule?

A)DNA
B)ATP
C)starch
D)glycogen
E)polypeptide

Question 32

Self-assembly is limited by

A)the size of the molecule.
B)the presence of water in the cytosol.
C)information of preexisting structures.
D)the time associated with forming solely noncovalent interactions.
E)all of the above

Question 33

A hypothetical automobile has 100 parts that are to be assembled by four workers.During the car's assembly,each worker constructs 25 parts individually,and then the four resulting components are assembled together.The manner in which the car was assembled is much like which cellular strategy?

A)hierarchical assembly
B)renaturation
C)electrostatic assembly
D)self-assembly
E)assisted self-assembly

Question 34

Which of the following is not a structural polysaccharide?

A)glycogen
B)peptidoglycan
C)cellulose
D)chitin
E)All of the above are structural polysaccharides.

Question 35

Which of the following is not soluble in water?

A)lipids
B)sugars
C)amino acids
D)disaccharides
E)nucleic acids

Question 36

An enzyme synthesized in the laboratory is found to have little activity when compared to the enzyme extracted from cell culture.Both enzymes were examined and have identical amino acid composition.What is the best explanation for the lack of activity of the synthesized enzyme?

A)The van der Waals radius was altered during laboratory synthesis.
B)The synthetic enzyme was not made of amino acids.
C)The ATP required for self-assembly was present in the cell extract but not in the laboratory synthesis.
D)Denaturation of the synthesized enzyme was not complete.
E)The synthesized enzyme was not folded correctly because molecular chaperones were not present.

Question 37

Monomers are removed from polymers by ________ reactions.

A)condensation
B)hydrolysis
C)neutralization
D)substitution
E)redox

Question 38

Which of the following is not a possible noncovalent interaction?

A)hydrogen bonding
B)ionic bonding
C)van der Waals interactions
D)hydrophobic interactions
E)polar covalent bonding

Question 39

Which of the following structures will self-assemble?

A)ribosomes
B)nucleosomes
C)translocons
D)huntingtin
E)all of the above

Question 40

Which of the following statements about the polymerization of macromolecules is false?

A)Often the energy needed for polymerization is supplied by ATP.
B)The polymer chain usually has two different ends.
C)Water is added to join the monomers of the macromolecules.
D)A monomer is usually activated by the coupling of the monomer to a carrier.
E)Macromolecules are synthesized by the stepwise addition of monomers.

Question 41

________ and ________ groups are negatively charged functional groups of carbon,whereas the ________ group is a positively charged functional group.

Question 42

The purpose of reducing and oxidizing agents in denaturation and renaturation is the breaking and reforming of the ________ bond.

Question 43

For each of the three basic macromolecules (proteins,polysaccharides,and nucleic acids),identify the monomer,its activated/carrier form,and the directionality of the molecule.

Question 44

Due to the directionality of polymer synthesis,proteins have distinct ________ and ________ ends.

Question 45

As a protein is being synthesized,the correct folding of the protein is aided by the movement of nonpolar amino acids toward the inner areas of the protein.How can this phenomenon be explained?

Question 46

A selectively ________ membrane is one that allows some molecules to pass through but not others.

Question 47

________ aid in the assembly of some biomolecules.

Question 48

TMV,or ________,is a rodlike particle with a genome of ________ and a ________ consisting of 2130 copies of a single polypeptide.

Question 49

In order to facilitate polymerization,monomers must be ________.

Question 50

________ carbon atoms allow for the formation of ________,which are mirror images of each other.

Question 51

The ________ of water is caused by the unequal sharing of electrons between oxygen and hydrogen atoms.

Question 52

The cell membrane is composed of a ________ bilayer.This molecule has regions that are polar and nonpolar and is therefore ________.

Question 53

Polymers are synthesized by ________ reactions and broken down into their constituent monomers by ________ reactions.

Question 54

Macromolecules can be assembled into ________ that are components of organelles and other subcellular organelles.

Question 55

Macromolecules are synthesized by a series of steps.Monomers are systematically added to the growing polymer.From what you have learned about the synthesis of macromolecules,can you suggest why people who are trying to lose weight are asked to drink plenty of water?

Question 56

Water has many unique properties.Can you identify the property of water that is responsible for each of the following observations?
a.Many insects,such as the water strider,are able to move across the surface of water.
b.Most people get chilled immediately after taking a shower.
c.A dime can be made to "float" on the surface of a glass of water.
d.The dime will sink if salt is added to the water.
e.On cold days,the water temperature is often warmer than the surrounding air.
f.Ice forms on the surface of lakes and rivers.
g.Many salts dissolve in water.
h.Many oils will not dissolve in water.
i.The coastal areas of the world have a climate that is more moderate than inland areas.
j.Some springs contain high amounts of arsenic.
k.The Great Salt Lake contains high quantities of mineral solutes.

Question 57

Because carbon is able to form up to four covalent bonds,it can take on a variety of orientations,including linear,________,and ________ structures.

Question 58

Describe the ways in which cell membranes are semipermeable.

Question 59

Describe how the amphipathic nature of phospholipids leads to the formation of the phospholipid bilayer organization observed in membrane structure.Based upon this information,how would you design a drug delivery system to cross the cell membrane?