CHAPTER 2: THE CHEMICAL BASIS

OF LIFE

Chemicals are the very stuff making up our bodies.

Lifes chemistry is tied to water.
The chemical reactions of your body take place in cells whose water
content ranges from 70% to 95%.

2.1 Organisms are composed of elements, in combinations called

compounds

Element is the substance that cannot be broken down to other

substances by ordinary chemical means
Compound is a substance consisting of two or more different
elements combined in a fixed ratio
Water the most abundant compound on Earth
Oxygen, Carbon, Hydrogen, Nitrogen make up about 96% of the
weight of the human body, as well as that of most other living
organisms

Points:
o There are 92 elements that occur in nature.
o Each element has a symbol, the first letter or two of its English,
Latin, or German name.
o Compounds are much more common than pure elements. In fact,
few elements exist in a pure state in nature.
o A compound has characteristics different from those of its
elements. (emergent properties)
o There are about 25 elements that are essential to life.
2.2 Trace elements are common additives to food and water
Points:
o Iron makes up only about 0.004% of your body weight but is
vital for energy processing and for transporting oxygen in
your blood.
o You need to ingest only a tiny amount of Iodine each day, about
0.15 milligram (mg).
o Iodine deficiency causes goiter and is linked to mental
retardation.

o Fluoride is a form of fluorine (F), an element in Earths crust

that is found in small amounts in all water sources.
o Fluoride can reduce tooth decay.
o Vitamins consist of more than one element and are examples of
compounds.
2.3 Atoms consist of protons, neutrons, and electrons

Atom named from a Greek word meaning indivisible, is the

smallest unit of matter that still retains the properties of an element
Atomic number number of protons in an atom
Mass number is the sum of the number of protons and neutrons in
its nucleus
Dalton unit of measurement used for the mass number
Isotopes have the same number of protons and behave identically in
chemical reactions, but they have different numbers of neutrons
Radioactive isotope is one in which the nucleus decays
spontaneously, giving off particles and energy

Points:
o An atom has an equal number of protons and electrons, and thus
its net electrical charge is 0 (zero).
o Protons and neutrons each have masses close to 1 Dalton.
o An electron has only about 1/2000 the mass of a proton.
o An atoms atomic mass (or weight) is approximately equal to
its mass number the sum of its protons and neutrons.
2.4 Radioactive isotopes can help or harm us
Points:
o Radioactive isotopes are useful as tracers.
o Biologists often use radioactive tracers to follow molecules as
they undergo chemical changes in an organism.
o Radioactive isotopes may also be used to tag chemicals that
accumulate in specific areas of the body.
o They are also used for treatment (e.g. PET Positron-Emission
Tomography Scanner, which is useful for diagnosing certain heart
disorders and cancers and for basic research on the brain)
o The particles and energy thrown off by radioactive atoms can
break chemical bonds and also cause abnormal bonds to form
(nuclear reactor explosion at Chernobyl, Ukraine in 1986).
o Radon, a radioactive gas, may be a cause for lung cancer.
2.5 The distribution of electrons determines an atoms chemical properties

Points:
o Only electrons are directly involved in the chemical activity of
an atom.
o The farther an electron is from the positively charged nucleus,
the greater its energy.
o Electrons move around the nucleus only at certain energy levels,
called electron shells.
o Within each shell, electron travel in different orbitals, which are
discrete volumes of space in which electrons are most likely to
be found.
o It is the number of electrons in the outermost shell, called the
valence shell, which determines the chemical properties of
atom.
o Atoms whose outer shells are not full (have unpaired electrons)
tend to interact with other atoms that is, to participate in
chemical reactions.
2.6 Covalent bonds join atoms into molecules through electron sharing

Valence the number that states the bonding capacity of an atom

Electronegativity the attraction for shared electrons
Nonpolar covalent bonds electrons are shared equally between
atoms
Polar covalent bonds the unequal sharing of electrons
Polar molecule molecule that has an unequal distribution of charges

Points:
o The strongest kind of chemical bond is the covalent bond.
o Two or more atoms held together by covalent bonds form a
molecule.
o How man covalent bonds can an atom form? It depends on the
number of additional electrons needed to fill its outer, or valence,
shell.
o The more electronegative an atom is, the more strongly it pulls
shared electrons toward its nucleus.
o Oxygen is one of the most electronegative of the elements.
(Nitrogen is also highly electronegative.)
2.7 Ionic bonds are attractions between ions of opposite charge

Ion is an atom or molecule with an electrical charge resulting from a

gain or loss of one or more electrons
Ionic bond when the attraction holds them together
Salt synonym for an ionic compound

Point:
o There is no fixed number of ions.
2.8 Hydrogen bonds are weak bonds important in the chemistry of life

Hydrogen bond - is the attractive force between

the hydrogen attached to an electronegative atom of one molecule and
an electronegative atom of a different molecule. Usually the
electronegative atom is oxygen, nitrogen, or fluorine, which has a
partial negative charge.
2.9 Chemical reactions make and break chemical bonds

Chemical reaction is the breaking and making of chemical bonds,

leading to changes in the composition of matter
The basic chemistry of life has an overarching theme: The structure of
atoms and molecules determines the way they behave.

2.10 Waters Life-Supporting Properties: Hydrogen bonds make liquid water

cohesive

Cohesion the tendency of molecules of the same kind to stick

together
Adhesion the clinging of one substance to another
Surface tension the measure of how difficult it is to stretch or break
the surface of a liquid

Points:
o Hydrogen bonds between molecules of liquid water last for only
a few trillionths of a second.
o The cohesion of water is important in the living world.
2.11 Waters Life-Supporting Properties: Waters hydrogen bonds moderate
temperature

Heat the amount of energy associated with the movement of

atoms and molecules in a body of matter
Temperature measures the intensity of heat that is, the average
speed of molecules rather than the total amount of heat energy in a
body of matter
Evaporative cooling a process in which the heat is removed from
an object by evaporation

Points:

o Water has a stronger resistance to temperature change than

most other substances because of hydrogen bonding.
o Heat must be absorbed in order to break hydrogen bonds,
and heat is released when hydrogen bonds form.
o Waters resistance to temperature change stabilizes ocean
temperatures.
o Water accounts for approximately 66% of your body weight.
o Evaporative cooling helps prevent some land-dwelling organisms
from overheating. Evaporation from a plants leaves keeps them
from becoming too warm in the sun, just as sweating helps
dissipate our excess body heat.
2.12 Waters Life-Supporting Properties: Ice is less dense than liquid water

Water is less dense as a solid than as a liquid.

The ice crystal has fewer molecules than an equal volume of liquid
water. Therefore ice is less dense and floats on top of liquid water.

2.13 Waters Life-Supporting Properties: Water is the solvent of life

Solution is a liquid consisting of a uniform mixture of two or more

substances
Solvent the dissolving agent
Solute the substance that is dissolved
Aqueous solution solution wherein water is the solvent

Points:
o Waters versatility as a solvent results from the polarity of its
molecules.
o A compound doesnt need to be ionic to dissolve in water.
2.14 The chemistry of life is sensitive to acidic and basic conditions

Acid a compound that donates hydrogen ions to solutions (e.g.

hydrochloric acid)
Base a compound that accepts hydrogen ions and removes them
from solution (e.g. sodium hydroxide)
pH scale used to describe how acidic or basic a solution is
Buffers substances in biological fluids that minimize changes in pH

Points:
o Basic solutions are also called alkaline solutions.
o pH stands for potential of hydrogen.
o The scale ranges from 0 (most acidic) to 14 (most basic).

o Each pH unit represents a 10-fold change in the concentration of

H+ in a solution.
2.15 Acid precipitation and ocean acidification threaten the environment

The burning of fossil fuels (coal, oil, and gas) is among the many
threats to water quality posed by human activities
Acid precipitation refers to rain, snow, or fog with a pH lower
than 5.2 (the pH of uncontaminated rain is 5.6)
Carbon dioxide is the main product of fossil fuel combustion
Ocean acidification CO2 dissolves in seawater lowers ocean pH.
(This is because CO2 reacts with water to produce carbonic acid.)
Calcification the process of producing skeletons or shells by corals
and other organisms.

Points:
o About 25% of human-generated CO2 is absorbed by the oceans.
o In ocean acidification, the change in acidity decreases the
concentration of carbonate ions, which is needed in
calcification.
2.16 The search for extraterrestrial life centers on the search for water
EMERGENT PROPERTIES OF WATER
1. Cohesion
2. Ability to moderate temperature and insulate
3. Versatility as a solvent