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Unit 3

Levels of biological organization


Tissue- a group of cells that function together
Organ- tissues that act together to form a

specific function in an organism


Question: What would come next?
Eukaryotic cells are made up of small unit
called organelles.
Organelles are NOT alive because they cannot
exist outside the cell.
Ex. Mitochondrion has a specific job, what is
it?

Types of cells used in biotechnology


Many different kinds of plant and animal

cells are grown and studied in biotechnology


labs.
In addiction to the CHO cells, Vero and HeLa
cells are grown and studied.
Vero cells- African green monkey kidney
epithelial cells
HeLa cells- human epithelial cells
E. coli is the most renowned cell used in
biotech labs.
Question: Why?

Carbohydrates
Fructose- a 6-Carbon sugar found in high

concentration in fruits; monosaccharide


Sucrose- composed of glucose and fructose;
disaccharide; table sugar
Lactose- composed of glucose and galactose;
disaccharide; milk sugar
Glucose- a 6-Carbon sugar; monosaccharide;
(C6H12O6)

Lipids
Insoluble in water (hydrophobic)

Three general groups of lipids:

Triglycerides- animal fats and plant oils; energy


storage
2. Phospholipids- phosphate group makes them
slightly water-soluble on one side; hydrophilic
head, hydrophobic tail
3. Steroids- acting as hormones (testosterone and
estrogen), venoms, and pigments; Cholesterol
1.

Groups of Lipids
1. Triglycerides- animal fats and plant

oils; energy storage molecules


2. Phospholipids- in cell membranes;
composed of two fatty acid chains; know
how to draw (pg. 51)
3. Steroids- hormones, venoms, and
pigments

Lipids: Structure of Fatty Acids


The tail of a fatty acid is a long hydrocarbon chain,

making it hydrophobic. The head of the molecule is


a carboxyl group which is hydrophilic
Fatty acids are the main component of soap, where
their tails are soluble in oily dirt and their heads are
soluble in water to emulsify and wash away the oily
dirt.
Saturated fats= no double bonds
Unsaturated fats= double bonds

Lipids: continued
An emulsifying agent is a substance which is soluble

in both oil and water, thus enabling the two to mix.

A famous phospholipid is lecithin which is found in

egg yolk and soybeans. Egg yolk is mostly water but


has a lot of lipids, especially cholesterol, which are
needed by the developing chick.

Lecithin is used to emulsify the lipids and hold them

in the water as an emulsion. Lecithin is the basis of


the classic emulsion known as mayonnaise.

Proteins
Structure of a protein is determined by its

amino acid sequence


Amino acids- monomers of proteins; Rgroup makes it unique
20 different amino acids found in proteins
In a biotechnology company, its typical to
employ more than 50% to 75% of the staff in
protein research and manufacturing.

Nucleic Acids
Nucleotides- monomer subunits of nucleic acids
Ribonucleic Acid (RNA)- functions in the

conversion of genetic instructions (DNA) into


proteins
Deoxyribonucleic Acid (DNA)- two strands of
nucleotides; genetic information
Biotechnology companies employ genetic
engineers to isolate and alter the DNA codes for a
particular protein or group of proteins.

NEED TO KNOW
The first genetic engineering took place in 1973

when scientists excised a segment of amphibian


DNA from the African clawed toad and pasted it
into a small ring of bacterial DNA called a
plasmid.
The new recombinant plasmid contained DNA
from two species (a bacterium and an
amphibian).
The plasmid was then inserted into a healthy E.
coli cell which read the toad DNA code, as if it
had been there all the time and synthesized
molecules encoded for on the rDNA; toad
ribosomal RNA.

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