PCHS Biochemistry Vocab
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Created by:
erikagilmore on November 14, 2010
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34 terms
Terms | Definitions |
|---|---|
 atom | the basic unit of matter |
| nucleus | the positively charged dense center of an atom |
| proton | a subatomic particle that has a positive charge and that is found in the nucleus of an atom |
| electron | a subatomic particle that has a negative charge |
| element | a pure substance made of only one kind of atom |
| chemical compound | a molecule composed of atoms of two or more different elements. |
| molecule | a combination of two or more atoms |
| neutron | a subatomic particle that has no charge and that is found in the nucleus of an atom |
| cohesion | attraction between molecules of the same substance |
| adhesion | an attraction between molecules of different substances |
| pH scale | scale used to measure the strength of acids or bases |
| acid | any substance with a pH between 0-6 on the pH scale |
| base | any substance with a pH between 8-14 on the pH scale. |
| buffer | Chemical that neutralizes small amounts of acids or bases added to a solution |
| solution | mixture of two or more substances in which the molecules of the substances are evenly distributed |
| solute | substance that is dissolved in a solvent to make a solution |
| solvent | substance in which a solute is dissolved to form a solution |
| monomer | a simple compound whose molecules can join together to form polymers |
| polymer | large compound formed from combination of many monomers |
| carbohydrate | compound made up of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen atoms in a ratio of 1:2:1; major source of energy for the human body |
| deoxyribonucleic acid | double-stranded nucleic acid that contains the sugar deoxyribose |
| ribonucleic acid | (RNA) single-stranded nucleic acid that contains the sugar ribose |
| lipid | huge molecule that contains carbon, hydrogen, and a little oxygen; includes fats, oils, and waxes |
| nucleic acid | very large organic molecule made of carbon, oxygen, hydrogen, nitrogen, and phosphorus, that contains the instructions cells need to carry out all the functions of life |
| nucleotide | building block of a nucleic acid (DNA and RNA) |
| protein | a polymer that contains carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen; needed by the body for growth and repair and to make up enzymes |
| amino acid | the building blocks of proteins |
| chemical reaction | process that changes one set of chemicals into another set of chemicals. |
| reactant | element or compound that enters into a chemical reaction. |
| product | element or compound produced by a chemical reaction. |
| activation energy | energy needed to get a reaction started. |
| catalyst | substance that speeds up the rate of a chemical reaction |
| enzyme | specialized proteins that speed up chemical reactions |
| substrate | a substance on which an enzyme acts during a chemical reaction |
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