study guide: dehydration synthesis, hydrolysis, phospholipids, RNA

Would a "LUCA" more closely resemble a bacterial cell or a eukaryotic cell? Why?

A bacterial cell (prokaryotic cell). Prokaryotes are much more primitive and more resemble the first living cells. Simple cell structure

Explain the relationship between the three major domains of life (Archaea, Bacteria, Eucaryota) and LUCA.

All of the bacteria evolved from luca.

Scientists hypothesize that Earth's early atmosphere contained substances such as...

Ammonia Methane carbon dioxide

A water molecule may be accurately compared to a magnet. Explain the properties that a water molecule and magnet share.

Both a magnet and water molecule have a positive and negative side.

Compare and contrast cohesion and adhesion.

Cohesion is when a water molecule is attracted to a water molecule. An adhesion is when a water molecule is attracted to another molecule.

What role does dehydration synthesis play in the creation of advanced organic molecules?

Dehydration played the part of creating the polymers.

The following is what type of reaction: C2H5OH + C2H6 → C4H10 + H2O

Dehydration synthesis

Suppose you were stranded on a desert island with no food or water. You are allowed to choose a machine that conducts either dehydration synthesis or hydrolysis for your utilization. Which do you choose and why?

Dehydration synthesis because it would create water instead of combining it to form a new monomer.

Compare and contrast the processes of dehydration synthesis and hydrolysis. Be sure to include the role of water in these processes.

Dehydration synthesis is essentially the opposite of hydrolysis. Dehydration is when you start off with 2 monomers and hydrolysis is when you start of with a polymer and water.

Polymers can be broken down into two new molecules through what process?

Hydrolysis

Would you use hydrolysis or dehydration synthesis to break a larger molecule into two smaller molecules? Support your answer.

Hydrolysis because it takes water and adds it to a polymer to create two monomers.

Explain how you as a human being meet all the criteria for life.

I meet the criteria for life because we have the 7 characteristics of life.

Suppose you are a NASA scientist, and a space probe returns with an object of unknown origin. Describe two tests you would use to help determine if the object could be considered living.

I would put it in a hot environment and then a cold environment to see if it reacts to the change. Then I would see if it grows during the time I would study it.

How did the cooling of Earth influence the presence of liquid water on its surface?

If the Earth surface didn't cool, every liquid would have evaporated because of how hot the Earth's surface was.

Why is it highly unlikely that the existing branches of life evolved from multiple origins?

It is highly unlikely because every ancestor of the organisms today would have had to go through the same evolution to have the same metabolic processes.

Why is it important for scientists to establish characteristics of living organisms?

It is important because they set out a guideline that helps determine what is alive.

Why was it significant that Stanley Miller's experiment inserted specific gases into the model? What did these gases represent?

It was significant because it modeled what early Earth's atmosphere was like. He was trying to prove that the monomers and polymers formed on Earth's surface and that they did not come from outer space. The gases represented what the atmosphere was like in earlier.

Homoeostasis is the maintenance of stable internal conditions regardless of the external environment. Provide an example of how a seal demonstrates homeostasis considering its environmental features.

It's blubber keeps the seal warm when it is in the cold and when it is swimming in the water. Hair No external ears Control of heart rate

Within early cells, what more complex molecules were able to form?

Macromolecules

Briefly explain the relationship between monomers and polymers.

Monomers are what polymers are made of.

Why is it significant that RNA can accomplish the three specific tasks you identified in the previous question?

Moved the evolution up

List the seven properties that we use to define "life."

Order Adaptions Response to environment Regulation Energy processing Growth Reproduction

What are the reactants in a hydrolysis reaction?

Polymer and water

What does hydrophobic mean?

Repels water

A bacterium budding (binary fission) and a pine tree producing pollen are both examples of what process that is part of the criteria of life?

Reproduction

A planarian moving towards a light source (phototaxis) is an example what characteristic of living organisms?

Response to environment

Briefly explain the two theorized sources of the origin of life on Earth.

That the monomers and everything came from outer space and crashed on Earth. Everything evolved on Earth because of the absence of oxygen.

Humans, trees and insects all share the same mRNA, phospholipid bilayer structure, molecular energy and genetic code. Briefly justify how we use the "LUCA" principle to explain these commonalities.

The LUCA principle explain the commonalities because it is highly unlikely for all the organisms on earth to have the commonalities if they were descendants from different ancestors.

What atmospheric component was absent in early Earth's atmosphere that is critical to our survival? Why is it important that it was absent during this time?

The atmosphere component that was absent early Earth's atmosphere was the UV radiation block and oxygen. Oxygen is very important and it's the thing that keeps us alive and running. Oxygen would have corroded the monomers and polymers.

What does the word synthesis mean?

The combining of separate parts to make a new whole (legos)

In baseball terminology, a "5-tool player" is a player who can execute 5 skills extremely well. RNA may be described as a "3-tool" molecule. Explain this comparison and identify the "3 tools."

The comparison is used because they both do x amount of things very well. RNA's "3 tools" are replication, metabolism and catalyzation.

When in the presence of water, how does a phospholipid orient itself? What property of water initiates this reaction?

The head of the phospholipid would go toward the water and the tail would go away from it.

How could the increasing thickness of the Earth's atmosphere have allowed for the arrival of basic organic molecules from space?

The increasing thickness of the Earth's atmosphere allowed for the arrival of basic organic molecules from space. This was because the extra atmosphere allowed for extra cushion so the asteroids/comets that came wouldn't have had a huge collision. All the molecules wouldn't have died.

What are the products of hydrolysis?

The products of hydrolysis are two new monomers.

Stanley Miller's model ultimately produced a collection of organic molecules. What did the synthesis of these organic molecules prove?

The synthesized organic molecules proved that it was possible that the monomers and polymers did in fact Evolve on Earth surface.

What characteristic of phospholipids causes them to always orient themselves in the same direction?

They have a positive and negative side and the negative attracted the positive and the positive attracted the negative.

What relationship exists between phospholipids and cell membranes?

They phospholipids make up the cell membranes and act as a barrier to protect them.

The letter 'U' in "LUCA" represents the word 'universal.' Explain the significance of this word when analyzing the meaning of this term.

This is significant because it shows that everyone/everything is a descendent from that one organism.

Explain, in terms of statistics, why shared metabolic processes throughout the domains of life support the theory of a common ancestry.

This supports the theory of common ancestry because there is highly unlikely that everything evolved from different ancestors.

How would plants conducting photosynthesis represent a characteristic of life?

This would represent energy processing because it shows the plants changing the energy of the sun into what they need to survive. Example of metabolism and the subsequent conversion of the chemical energy on ATP is the basis metabolic process of most like on Earth

Why does all life on Earth share much of the same metabolic processes?

We share so much because we all came from the same ancestor.

The cheetah is a species that has developed small ears, large nostrils, non-retractable claws and a long, sturdy tail over many generations. Which characteristic of living organisms does the development of these characteristics satisfy?

adaptions

The special alignment of phospholipids in an aqueous environment led to the formation of what?

bilayer sheet

The following is what type of reaction: C6H14 + H2O → C5H11OH + CH4

hydrolysis

Which of the following was probably not present in the atmosphere of the primitive Earth? methane oxygen water carbon dioxide ammonia

oxygen

What does the word lysis mean?

splitting

What does hydrophilic mean?

(phospholipids) negative head are attracted to water and can bond to hydrogen