Biochemistry: Studies of life at the molecular level

[therock1988]

All the living organisms share many common attributes, such as the capability to extract energy from nutrients, the power to respond to changes in their environments, and the ability to grow, to differentiate, and to reproduce. Biochemistry is the study of life at the molecular level (Garrett and Grisham, 1999; Mathews and van Holde, 1996; Voet and Voet, 1995; Stryer, 1995; Zubay, 1998). It investigates the phenomena of life by using physical and chemical methods dealing with (a) the structures of biological compounds (biomolecules), (b) biomolecular transformations and functions, (c) changes accompanying these transformations, (d) their control mechanisms, and (e) impacts arising from these activities.
The distinct feature of biochemistry is that it uses the principles and language
of one science, chemistry, to explain the other science, biology at the molecular level. Biochemistry can be divided into three principal areas: (1) Structural biochemistry focuses on the structural chemistry of the components of living matter and the relationship between chemical structure and biological function. (2) Dynamic biochemistry deals with the totality of chemical reactions known as metabolic processes
that occur in living systems and their regulations. (3) Information biochemistry is concerned with the chemistry of processes and substances that store and transmit biological information (Figure 1.1). The third area is also the province of molecular genetics, a field that seeks to understand heredity and the expression of genetic information in molecular terms.
Among biomolecules, water is the most common compound in living organisms,
accounting for at least 70% of the weight of most cells, because water is both the major solvent of organisms and a reagent in many biochemical reactions. Most complex biomolecules are composed of only a few chemical elements. In fact, over 97% of the weight of most organisms is due to six elements (% in human): oxygen (62.81%), carbon (19.37%), hydrogen (9.31%), nitrogen (5.14%), phosphorus (0.63%), and sulfur (0.64%). In addition to covalent bonds (3000
150 kJ/mol for single bonds) that hold molecules together, a number of weaker chemical forces (ranging from 4 to 30 kJ/mol) acting between molecules are responsible for many of the important properties of biomolecules. Among these noncovalent interactions are van der Waals forces, hydrogen bonds, ionic bonds/electrostatic
interactions, and hydrophobic interactions.

[kevinchannon]

Er, you seem to be just posting random sections pasted from a textbook or something. I'm not sure this is really helpful to anyone. Usually a forum would be used to ask a specific question that you either just want to know the answer to or wish to start a discussion about.