Rucete ✏ Campbell Biology In a Nutshell
Unit 1 THE CHEMISTRY OF LIFE — Concept 5.1 Macromolecules Are Polymers, Built from Monomers — Practice Questions
(Multiple Choice — Click to Reveal Answer)
1. What are large molecules like carbohydrates and proteins called?
- Monomers
- Polymers
- Ions
- Isomers
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2. Polymers
2. What is the name for the small building blocks of polymers?
- Isotopes
- Ions
- Monomers
- Fatty acids
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3. Monomers
3. What type of bond joins monomers in a polymer?
- Hydrogen
- Ionic
- Covalent
- Metallic
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3. Covalent
4. What is the name of the reaction that joins monomers together?
- Hydrolysis
- Combustion
- Dehydration
- Reduction
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3. Dehydration
5. What small molecule is lost during a dehydration reaction?
- Carbon dioxide
- Oxygen
- Water
- Nitrogen
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3. Water
6. What type of reaction breaks polymers into monomers?
- Oxidation
- Hydrolysis
- Dehydration
- Combustion
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2. Hydrolysis
7. What is required for hydrolysis to occur?
- Oxygen
- Enzymes
- Water
- Carbon dioxide
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3. Water
8. What are enzymes?
- Carbohydrates that store energy
- Fats that insulate cells
- Specialized proteins that speed up reactions
- Nucleic acids used in transcription
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3. Specialized proteins that speed up reactions
9. In a dehydration reaction, what group does one monomer contribute?
- A methyl group
- A hydroxyl group (—OH)
- A carboxyl group
- A phosphate group
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2. A hydroxyl group (—OH)
10. What does the other monomer contribute in a dehydration reaction?
- Another —OH
- Hydrogen (—H)
- Carbon dioxide
- ATP
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2. Hydrogen (—H)
11. Which of the following is NOT a polymer?
- Protein
- DNA
- Lipid
- Starch
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3. Lipid
12. What is the process of building polymers from monomers called?
- Hydration
- Polymerization
- Reduction
- Hydrolysis
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2. Polymerization
13. Which macromolecule is built from amino acids?
- Lipids
- Carbohydrates
- Proteins
- Nucleic acids
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3. Proteins
14. What happens during digestion in your body?
- Dehydration reactions assemble proteins
- Enzymes break polymers into monomers via hydrolysis
- DNA is turned into protein
- Cells absorb entire polymers
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2. Enzymes break polymers into monomers via hydrolysis
15. Which of the following is a function of monomers?
- They form cells directly
- They are used only for storage
- They can have roles of their own and build polymers
- They neutralize acids
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3. They can have roles of their own and build polymers
16. How many common monomers are typically used to build life’s polymers?
- 5–10
- 40–50
- 100–200
- Thousands
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2. 40–50
17. What contributes to the vast diversity of polymers?
- The large size of monomers
- Their positive charge
- The arrangement of monomers
- Their radioactive isotopes
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3. The arrangement of monomers
18. Which example is most like how polymers are built from monomers?
- Letters making words
- Stones skipping water
- Clouds forming
- Electricity flowing
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1. Letters making words
19. What type of biological molecules are enzymes typically made of?
- Carbohydrates
- Lipids
- Proteins
- Nucleic acids
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3. Proteins
20. What is a key characteristic of all polymers?
- They all dissolve in fat
- They consist of repeating monomer units
- They are ionic compounds
- They store calcium
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2. They consist of repeating monomer units
21. Why must polymers be broken down during digestion?
- Because they are too small
- Because monomers are harmful
- Because only monomers can be absorbed into cells
- Because polymers are acidic
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3. Because only monomers can be absorbed into cells
22. Which class of macromolecules is typically not a true polymer?
- Carbohydrates
- Proteins
- Lipids
- Nucleic acids
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3. Lipids
23. What happens during a condensation reaction?
- A molecule is split by water
- A bond is formed with the loss of a small molecule
- Heat is absorbed
- Oxygen is removed
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2. A bond is formed with the loss of a small molecule
24. What speeds up chemical reactions in cells?
- Hormones
- Enzymes
- Vitamins
- Salts
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2. Enzymes
25. Why is the molecular logic of life considered “simple but elegant”?
- It only uses water
- It produces only one kind of molecule
- It builds enormous complexity from small, common building blocks
- It avoids using proteins
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3. It builds enormous complexity from small, common building blocks
26. What specifically distinguishes polymers of different organisms from one another?
- Types of atoms used
- Environmental conditions
- Sequence of monomers
- pH of the solution
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3. Sequence of monomers
27. What role do enzymes play in polymer synthesis?
- They store energy in polymers
- They bond directly with monomers
- They catalyze the dehydration reactions that link monomers
- They convert polymers into ATP
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3. They catalyze the dehydration reactions that link monomers
28. Why is a dehydration reaction considered anabolic?
- It breaks down large molecules
- It requires light to occur
- It removes oxygen from polymers
- It builds larger molecules from smaller ones
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4. It builds larger molecules from smaller ones
29. What happens to water during hydrolysis of a polymer?
- It is released as a by-product
- It provides atoms to break a bond between monomers
- It bonds to the enzyme
- It evaporates from the solution
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2. It provides atoms to break a bond between monomers
30. Which of the following best illustrates the emergent property of macromolecules?
- Their ability to dissolve in water
- Functional capabilities not found in individual monomers
- How large they are
- The number of monomers they contain
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2. Functional capabilities not found in individual monomers
31. What is the most accurate reason cells need to break down polymers?
- To reduce cell size
- To maintain neutral pH
- To obtain usable monomers for cellular functions
- To prevent toxicity
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3. To obtain usable monomers for cellular functions
32. Why do proteins exhibit greater structural diversity than carbohydrates?
- They have more polar bonds
- They are less soluble in water
- They are made from a greater variety of monomers (20 amino acids)
- They contain nitrogen
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3. They are made from a greater variety of monomers (20 amino acids)
33. Which of the following is true about macromolecules and emergent properties?
- Monomers have more functions than polymers
- Polymers can perform functions that individual monomers cannot
- All polymers are hydrophobic
- Polymers only store energy
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2. Polymers can perform functions that individual monomers cannot
34. What does the analogy of letters and words explain in polymer chemistry?
- Polymers are always shorter than words
- Polymers form only one type of molecule
- Diversity of polymers arises from monomer sequence
- Polymers are made from vowels only
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3. Diversity of polymers arises from monomer sequence
35. Why can a small number of monomers build an immense variety of polymers?
- Because they are large and heavy
- Because they are negatively charged
- Because their sequence and length can vary greatly
- Because they are made of metal ions
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3. Because their sequence and length can vary greatly
36. Define a polymer and explain how it relates to monomers.
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A polymer is a long molecule consisting of many similar or identical monomers linked together by covalent bonds.
37. Describe the chemical process that links monomers together to form a polymer.
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Dehydration reaction—monomers are covalently bonded together with the loss of a water molecule (—OH from one, —H from another).
38. What role do enzymes play in polymer formation and breakdown?
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Enzymes catalyze dehydration reactions to build polymers and hydrolysis reactions to break them down.
39. How does hydrolysis differ from dehydration?
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Hydrolysis breaks down polymers by adding water; dehydration builds polymers by removing water.
40. Why can’t large polymers be absorbed directly into cells during digestion?
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They are too large to pass through cell membranes; they must be broken down into monomers first.
41. Provide an example of a dehydration reaction in the human body.
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The formation of a peptide bond between amino acids during protein synthesis.
42. Explain how hydrolysis is used during digestion.
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Enzymes add water to break down polymers in food into monomers, which are then absorbed into the bloodstream.
43. What do all macromolecules have in common regarding structure?
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They are made by linking together small repeating units (monomers) to form polymers.
44. Why does the analogy of letters forming words apply to polymers?
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Just like letters form different words based on sequence, monomers form different polymers based on their arrangement.
45. How do slight variations in DNA polymer sequences explain genetic differences?
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Even small changes in the order of nucleotide monomers can lead to different proteins and traits, explaining differences between individuals.
46. How can cells use the same monomers to build many different polymers?
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By changing the sequence, length, and structure of monomers during polymerization.
47. What is the significance of emergent properties in macromolecules?
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Macromolecules exhibit properties not seen in individual monomers, such as catalytic activity or structural support.
48. What is meant by the “molecular logic of life” in the context of macromolecules?
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It refers to how simple, common monomers are ordered into complex polymers that carry out diverse biological functions.
49. Describe how a dehydration reaction is repeated during polymer growth.
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Each time a monomer is added to the growing chain, another dehydration reaction occurs, removing water and forming a new covalent bond.
50. Why is understanding monomer and polymer structure essential in biology?
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Because structure determines function; knowing how polymers are built from monomers explains how cells construct proteins, DNA, and other vital molecules.