Macromolecules Lab Report

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The purpose of this lab is to learn how to properly conduct two different macromolecules test, the nucleic test and protein test in order to identify whether four different types of food, contain proteins and nucleic acid. The way an individual can determine if a specific macromolecule is present is by conducting qualitative tests, which allows an individual to determine whether a certain macromolecule is present by observing the color change. Additionally, for statistical analysis semi-quantitative tests will be conducted as well to determine the relative amount of a macromolecule that is present in the food based on the color change. (Dooley 20). Moreover, before conducting this experiment an individual must determine the positive and negative …show more content…

Macromolecules are define as large molecules of structures found in living organisms. There are four types of macromolecules, which are proteins, carbohydrate, nucleic acid, and lipids also known as fats. Carbohydrates, proteins, and nucleic acids are made of monomers, which are structural units that eventually attached together to form polymers (Dooley 20). For instance, proteins are made of amino acids, which are monomers. In addition, it has a complex structure, which consist of four different levels, primary, secondary, tertiary, and quaternary. The first structure of protein is the primary structure, which is the sequence of amino acid, while in the secondary structure alpha and beta helices are formed. The structure, in which a protein becomes active, is in the tertiary structure, which is where polypeptide subunits fold. Meanwhile, only certain proteins have the quaternary structure, which is when, more than one polypeptide folds. Proteins are prominent macromolecules mainly because of their numerous functions. For instance, proteins are known for increasing the rate of reactions due to that enzymes are a type of protein. In addition, they are a form of defense mechanism such as they attack pathogens, which cause diseases. In other words, scientists study and gain more insight on certain illness and how to prevent them by using proteins. For example, in a recent study,

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