Macromolecules | Classes and Functions

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Thanks for stopping by, this is 2 Minute Classroom and today we're gonna talk about macromolecules.

Macromolecules are large structures that make up all living organisms. All macromolecules have small subunits called monomers which bind together to form larger units called polymers. There are four classes of macromolecules. Carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, and nucleic acids. I'll talk about each of these, in turn, starting with carbohydrates.

Carbohydrates are the main fuel source for most living things as well as a structural component for many plants. The monomers for carbohydrates are called monosaccharides, saccharide means sugar so monosaccharides one sugar. These are simple sugars like glucose, fructose, and ribose. Then your polymers are called polysaccharides and they're long chains of monomers or monosaccharides. There are storage carbohydrates like starch in plants, and glycogen in animals for energy storage. And then structural like cellulose and plants and chitin in insects.
Moving on to lipids. Lipids have a variety of functions in living organisms and there's a lot of things lumped into the category of lipids because they're all hydrophobic. All right some functions include energy storage, cell membrane formation, and steroid function. They have no real monomers, they're just kind of they just are what they are. So fats include triglycerides and saturated unsaturated fats. You also have phospholipids which form the cellular membranes. Then steroids which include all sex hormones and all the steroids form from a cholesterol base. All those are included in lipids, so it's pretty diverse.
Then you have proteins. proteins are involved in nearly all cellular functions and are a major part of all living organisms. Their monomers are called amino acids and there are 20 different amino acids. Their polymers are called polypeptides, you bind amino acids together to get polypeptides. The protein structure results from folding which determines the function.
Lastly, you have nucleic acids. Nucleic acids store, transmit and express genetic information. Their monomers are called nucleotides like adenine, guanine, and thymine. you may be familiar with these terms from studying DNA and RNA. And that's what their polymers are they're called polynucleotides and they're strands of DNA and RNA.

[katherine]

I wish this guy had more videos but every time I encounter videos of his it's very direct and straight to the point. This guy and Organic Chem Tutor are the best educational YouTubers.

[mytubthree]

Great video! I assign this to my middle school students.

FYI: 0:18 the correct list is written but “amino acids” is voiced instead of “nucleic acid”.

[onetuxedocat]

Not all superheroes wear capes. Thank u! My teacher doesn’t know how to teach and I feel more confident about this topic!

[TheBoss-ixpq]

LIFE SAVER! You explained this better than I have heard any professor of mine ever do.

[jaxinericks]

My whole Biology class watched this :)

[allisterproductions]

my teacher just gave us a paper and one day to study and this video saved me, THANK YOU SO MUCH

[AmberMeade]

Perfect, short and simple break down of what can be overwhelming material. Thank you <3

[yolow]

Love how concise your explanation is! No going around the bush.. just straight talk

[emma.luvs.reading]

Thank you very much for this brief explanation! I started learning out Macromolecules in my high school biology class and i was so intrigued that i googled some videos to learn more. I love this simple yet very helpful explanation about it! Keep up the good work!

[jillbert]

5 weeks into my micro class and this is the first time I'm able to grasp what should be such a simple concept, so thank you for making it so. Entire class has D's or F's, wish you were teaching us.

[nataliedevenbeck]

This was helpful in clarifying and clearing up a few things for me, thank you!

[PapagenoDispo]

needed a last minute review before my prelims, thank you!

[giuliachiari]

ive been learning so much with your videos, thx a lot!!

[Michael-spvi]

so much better at explaining than my biology teacher.

[Fillardmillmore]

As an auditory (+ visual, to a lesser degree) learner, having a class where our teacher is just spitting info out, never circling back, never simplifying it to show its really just 4 simple threads, was tough. I never realized how simple it was...

[Megumi]

Loved the video, very colorful. Helps me pay attention with my ADHD.

[ryancastor]

fix your intro! last class of macromolecules is actually NUCLEIC ACIDS...NOT amino acids. amino acids are the monomers of proteins!

[elizaricks]

Thank you so much, this really helped me study for my Macromolecules test! (I was absent the day we learned about it)😅

[adi_]

Thx soo much this video helped me on my test. :)

[taksheelpandit]

Dude thanks so much, you are a life saver in science.