College Bio: Chapter 3 Vocabulary

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Enzyme

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A protein catalyst used by living organisms to speed up and control biological reactions.

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Catalysis

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Acceleration of the rate of a chemical reaction due to a decrease in the free energy of the transition state, called the activation energy.

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Amino Acid

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A small organic molecule bonded to an amino group (-NH3), a carboxyl group (-COOH), a hydrogen atom, and a side group. Proteins are polymers of twenty common amino acids.

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Hydrophobic

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Not interacting readily with water; typical of nonpolar compounds containing that lack charged or electronegative atoms.

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Hydrophilic

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Interacting readily with water; typical of polar compounds or those containing charged or electronegative atoms.

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Isomer

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A molecule that has the same molecular formula as another molecule but differs from it in three-dimensional structure.

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Polymer

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Any long molecule composed of small repeating units (monomers) bonded together; main biological ones include proteins, nucleic acids, and polysaccharides.

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Polymerization

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The process by which many identical or similar small molecules (monomers) are covalently bonded to form a large molecule.

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Macromolecule

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Any very large organic molecule, usually made up of smaller molecules (monomers) joined together into a polymer; main biological ones include proteins, nucleic acids, and polysaccharides.

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Protein

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A macromolecule consisting of one or more polypeptide chains composed of fifty or more amino acids linked together.