Identification by Structure

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Biochemistry › Identification by Structure

Questions 1 - 10
1

Which of the following are pyrimidines?

Cytosine (C), uracil (U), and thymine (T)

Adenine (A) and guanine (G)

Cytosine (C) and uracil (U)

Adenine (A), guanine (G), and uracil (U)

Explanation

Think of it as this. CUT the PY (pie) PYrimidines. PURe As Gold. PURines. A will pair with T (and U in RNA). G will pair with C. The deamination of cytosine makes uracil, which is in RNA.

2

In the eukaryotic ribosome, the sedimentation coefficient for the small subunit is __________ and large subunit is __________.

40S . . . 60S

20S . . . 60S

60S . . . 80S

35S . . . 70S

40S . . . 70S

Explanation

The 80S eukaryotic ribosome is made up of 40S and 60S subunits.

3

Which of the following statements best describes high-density lipoproteins as compared to other lipoproteins?

They have the highest protein content

They have more triglycerides than very low-density lipoproteins

They have the most triglycerides and least protein

They have the highest content of cholesterol and cholesterol esters

Explanation

High-density lipoproteins have the highest proportion of protein of the five classes of blood lipoproteins: chylomicrons, very-low-density lipoproteins, intermediate-density lipoproteins, low-density lipoproteins, and high-density lipoproteins. Chylomicrons have the lowest density of the five classes of lipoproteins. This is because the have the highest proportion of triglycerides and the least lowest proportion of protein. Very-low-density lipoproteins are a bit more dense than chylomicrons; however, the relative amount of triglycerides is still high. Intermediate-density lipoproteins which are formed from the very-low-density lipoproteins have a higher density than very-low-density lipoproteins due to the fact that they have less than half of the amount of triglycerides as very-low-density lipoproteins. Low-density lipoproteins have the highest amount of cholesterol and an even lesser amount of triglycerides than intermediate-density lipoproteins. Lastly, high-density lipoproteins are the densest of the lipoproteins due to the fact that they have the highest amount of protein in relation to the amount of triglycerides they contain.

4

Cytosine

What is the name of the molecule shown?

Cytosine

Cytidine

Uracil

Thymine

Pyrimidine

Explanation

A nucleoside is the nitrogenous base bound to a sugar via glycosidic bond. A nucleotide is a nitrogenous base bonded to a sugar bonded to the phosphate. This nitrogenous base is cytosine. If it were bound to ribose, it would be called cytidine. Although cytosine is a pyrimidine like uracil and thymine, pyrimidine is a class of ring structure, not the specific name of a base.

5

Cytosine

What is the name of the molecule shown?

Cytosine

Cytidine

Uracil

Thymine

Pyrimidine

Explanation

A nucleoside is the nitrogenous base bound to a sugar via glycosidic bond. A nucleotide is a nitrogenous base bonded to a sugar bonded to the phosphate. This nitrogenous base is cytosine. If it were bound to ribose, it would be called cytidine. Although cytosine is a pyrimidine like uracil and thymine, pyrimidine is a class of ring structure, not the specific name of a base.

6

Which of the following are pyrimidines?

Cytosine (C), uracil (U), and thymine (T)

Adenine (A) and guanine (G)

Cytosine (C) and uracil (U)

Adenine (A), guanine (G), and uracil (U)

Explanation

Think of it as this. CUT the PY (pie) PYrimidines. PURe As Gold. PURines. A will pair with T (and U in RNA). G will pair with C. The deamination of cytosine makes uracil, which is in RNA.

7

Which of the following statements best describes high-density lipoproteins as compared to other lipoproteins?

They have the highest protein content

They have more triglycerides than very low-density lipoproteins

They have the most triglycerides and least protein

They have the highest content of cholesterol and cholesterol esters

Explanation

High-density lipoproteins have the highest proportion of protein of the five classes of blood lipoproteins: chylomicrons, very-low-density lipoproteins, intermediate-density lipoproteins, low-density lipoproteins, and high-density lipoproteins. Chylomicrons have the lowest density of the five classes of lipoproteins. This is because the have the highest proportion of triglycerides and the least lowest proportion of protein. Very-low-density lipoproteins are a bit more dense than chylomicrons; however, the relative amount of triglycerides is still high. Intermediate-density lipoproteins which are formed from the very-low-density lipoproteins have a higher density than very-low-density lipoproteins due to the fact that they have less than half of the amount of triglycerides as very-low-density lipoproteins. Low-density lipoproteins have the highest amount of cholesterol and an even lesser amount of triglycerides than intermediate-density lipoproteins. Lastly, high-density lipoproteins are the densest of the lipoproteins due to the fact that they have the highest amount of protein in relation to the amount of triglycerides they contain.

8

In the eukaryotic ribosome, the sedimentation coefficient for the small subunit is __________ and large subunit is __________.

40S . . . 60S

20S . . . 60S

60S . . . 80S

35S . . . 70S

40S . . . 70S

Explanation

The 80S eukaryotic ribosome is made up of 40S and 60S subunits.

9

Which of the following associations about lipids is false?

Triacylglycerols - no hydrophobic fatty acid tails

Phospholipid - hydrophobic fatty acid tail

Steroid - multiple rings

Glycolipids - hydrophobic fatty acid tails

Isoprene - five-carbon atoms

Explanation

Triacylglycerols, like phospholipids and glycolipids, have long, hydrophobic, fatty acid tails. Steroids are characterized by their ABCD ring structure. Isoprene, the building block of steroids and polyisoprenoids, has five carbon atoms.

10

Vt biochem 11 28 15

What is the most accurate description of the given compound?

This compound is a lipid

This compound is a carbohydrate

This compound is a protein

This compound is a nucleic acid

The structure is an amino acid

Explanation

This question is presenting is with the molecular structure of some unknown compound, and is asking us to identify the most appropriate classification for it.

From the picture, we can see that this structure has a carbon backbone. On the carbon backbone, we have three long hydrocarbon chains attached to the backbone via an ester linkage. Thus, this compound is a triglyceride (also known as a triacylglycerol).

From our understanding of biochemistry, we know that triglycerides are a type of lipid, thus making this the correct answer.

The structure shown is not a protein or a nucleic acid, as both of these compounds contain nitrogen or phosphate as part of their molecular structure, respectively. Proteins are linked by a characteristic series of amino acids, each of which has a unique side chain group. Nucleic acids, on the other hand, contain a sugar-phosphate backbone connected by phosphodiester linkages, along with nitrogenous bases.

Furthermore, this structure is not a carbohydrate, as these structures generally have a carbon:hydrogen:oxygen ratio of .

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