The Role Of Chemicals To Human Structure And Function

Introduction

In this research, it will discuss the role of chemicals to our human structure and function. It will be about the levels of chemical organization, chemical bonding, inorganic chemistry and organic chemistry. This research should be able you to define the terms atom, element, molecule, and compound. It will describe the structure of an atom, compare the contrast ionic and covalent types of chemical compounds bonding. It will let you distinguish between organic and inorganic chemical compounds. It will also discuss the chemical characteristics of water, explain the concept of pH and discuss the structure and function of the following type of organic molecules which are carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, and nucleic acid.

Chemistry is part of our life. Chemical processes are when we digest food, the formation of body tissue and when our muscles are contracting. Biochemistry is the study of chemical processes and substances within the aspects of life. It classifies matter into levels of organization.

Levels of Chemical Organization

Matter is any substance that occupies space and has mass. Most chemicals in our body are in the form of molecules. Molecules is a group of two or more atoms bonded together by chemical bonds. It is the smallest particle of a chemical compound that also causes chemical reaction. Atom consists of several kinds of subatomic particles. The subatomic particles are protons, electrons, and neutrons. Protons have a positive charge particle in the nucleus. Electrons have a negative charge particle. Neutron is a non-charged particle in the nucleus. The combined protons and neutrons are the atom’s atomic mass. While the atom’s atomic number is the number of protons in the nucleus. The electrons can be found in the energy levels or orbitals surrounding the nucleus. The energy increases when it is farther away from the nucleus. The energy level can hold up to eight electrons. The closest energy level has one orbital to the nucleus and can hold two electrons. The next energy level has four orbitals and can hold up to eight electrons.

There are two substances of an atom. These are the elements and compounds. An element is a pure substance consists of only one kind of atom. A compound is a substance whose molecules have more than one atom.

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Chemical Bonding

A chemical bonding make atoms more stable. It is an attraction between atoms, ions, or molecules that allows the formation of chemical compounds. If an atom’s outer energy level is full, it is chemically stable. The outermost energy level will be full by the reaction of atoms to one another in many ways. Atoms can share, donate, or borrow electrons to create this full energy level.

Ionic bond is one of the common ways to make the atom’s outermost energy level full. It makes the atom donate or borrow its outermost electrons to the other one who needs one or two. A compound who has a positive sign is a positive ion that means it lost an electron or donated electrons. A compound who has a negative sign is a negative ion that means it gained an electron or borrowed electrons. When positive and negative ions attract each other because of electrical attraction it forms ionic bonds. Ionic molecules can dissociate in water to form individual ions, we call this electrolyte. A covalent bond is also one of the ways to make atom’s outermost energy level is full. Instead of donating or borrowing electrons, it shares electrons to make the atom stable.

Inorganic and Organic Chemistry

Organic molecules contains carbon-carbon covalent bonds or carbon-hydrogen covalent bonds, while inorganic molecules do not. Inorganic molecules are water, some acids, bases, and salts. Water is a solvent that dissolves solute. It is involved in chemical reactions like Dehydration synthesis in which water is removed from small molecules to form larger molecules, and Hydrolysis in which water is added to a larger molecule to break it to a smaller molecules. To build ATP molecules it always involves a chemical reaction that transfers energy. When acids and bases mix and form salts, neutralization occurs. Acid is a substance that shifts the balance in favor of H+and base is against H+, the opposite of acid. Base is also known as alkaline. To determine if the concentration is acid or base, there is an aqueous solution. A pH is the mathematical expression of the acid or base, if the pH is above 7 it is basic, below 7 is acidic, and neutral or 7 is neither base or acid. When acids and bases mix and forms salts neutralization occurs.

Organic chemistry are carbohydrates, lipids, cholesterol, proteins, and nucleic acids. Carbohydrates has sugars and complex carbohydrates. It stores energy for later use. It is made up of six carbon subunits called monosaccharides (single sugar), disaccharide (double sugar), and polysaccharide (made up of many monosaccharide units). Lipids are fats and oils. It has triglycerides made up of one glycerol unit and three fatty acids that store energy for later use. Phospholipids is also similar to triglyceride’s structure but it only have two fatty acids, and with a phosphorus containing group attached to glycerol. The phospholipid’s structure has a head that attracts water and a double tail that does not. Phospholipid also form membranes of cell. Cholesterol helps stabilize the phospholipid tails in cellular membranes and can convert into steroid hormones by the body. Protein is an organic chemistry that has a very large molecules made up of amino acids. There are two shapes of protein molecule that determines the role in body chemistry. The protein that allows to form structures of the body is called structural proteins. Examples of it are collagen and keratin. The other protein that participate in chemical processes of the body is called functional protein. It also includes growth factors, receptors, enzymes, hormones, and cell membrane channels. Chemical catalysts helps in chemical reaction to occur but are not reactants, enzymes is an example of a chemical catalyst. They are vital to the body chemistry. Protein can also bond to other organic compounds and form mixed molecules like glycoproteins or lipoproteins. Nucleic acid is one of the organic chemistry that are made up of nucleotide units. It has two forms of nucleic acid, deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and ribonucleic acid (RNA). Nucleic acid has basic building blocks called nucleotides. It consists of a phosphate, a sugar (deoxyribose and ribose) and a nitrogen base. Deoxyribonucleic acid is the cell’s master code used for assembling proteins. It consists of adenine, thymine, guanine, and cytosine as the nucleotide bases. It forms strand or other structures in a twisted, double strand called double helix shape. On the other hand, Ribonucleic acid is used as the working copy of a gene temporarily, portion of a DNA code. It has adenine, uracil not thymine, guanine, and cytosine as the nucleotide bases. Lastly, the nucleic acids direct overall body structure and function by directing the formation of structural and function proteins.

Chemistry stands a very important role in our daily living. Understanding this concept will expand our knowledge of how it helps us in life. Chemistry is just not happens on us but also in our surroundings. With it, we can discover things like how they are formed and function.