The importance of Hydrogen Bonds Essay

Submitted By jacktg123
Words: 825
Pages: 4
Open Document
The Importance of Hydrogen Bonds

Hydrogen bonds are bonds between two molecules caused by an electrostatic attraction between a proton and a negatively charged atom e.g. Nitrogen, Oxygen or Fluorine. These tend to be weak bonds compared to ionic or covalent bonds (but stronger than intermolecular bonds), however if there are a series of Hydrogen bonds, they can form a ring structure known as a chelate which is very strong and known for moving metal atoms. Greater viscosity and boiling points occur in substances that can form hydrogen bonds.
Hydrogen Bonds form between DNA Bases, Adenine-Thymine Cytosine-Guanine linking the DNA strands together and causing the DNA to coil in order to create its 3D structure (DNA Double Helix). They are important as they allow semi-conservative DNA replication to occur. This is where two identical copies of DNA are produced from an original DNA double Helix. Firstly The enzyme DNA helicase will break the hydrogen bonds formed between the bases to separate the DNA strands, free nucleotides will then bind with the complementary bases on the Strands and finally hydrogen bonds will reform between the bases (with the help of DNA polymerase) to create two new identical DNA molecules; without these hydrogen bonds we would not be able to produce new DNA, It is useful that hydrogen bonds are weak as they allow the breaking down of DNA to form new DNA.

Another use for Hydrogen bonds is that they cause proteins to form different shapes. Proteins have different structures known as the primary structure, secondary structure, tertiary structure and quaternary structure. In the primary structure it is simply a long chain of amino acids. However, the secondary structure does not remain flat and straight but instead hydrogen bonds form between the amino acid chains to form either a coiled structure (known as an Alpha helix) or a Beta pleated sheet structure. This secondary structure is then coiled/folded further to form a tertiary structure which is the final structure if there is only one polypeptide chain. However, if there is multiple polypeptide chains they can join together using bonds to form a quaternary structure e.g. Haemoglobin.

These different structures are important in determining the roles that these proteins play in their environment. For example Haemoglobin is very compact due to its structure (partially caused by hydrogen bonds) making it good for oxygen transport around the body.
Cellulose is a polysaccharide made from long chains of Beta glucose and it is primarily used to form the Cell Wall in plant cells. Hydrogen bonds are important in the structure as they form between cellulose molecules to create strong fibres known as microfibrils which are essential in cellulose in order to give the plant structural support, without these hydrogen bonds, the cell wall in plant cells would be weak and give no structural support.

Antibodies are folded proteins with a 3D structure caused by hydrogen bonding. They are used during an immune response and they are made up of two Light (short) polypeptide chains and two heavy (long) polypeptide chains which are bonded together to form a “Y” shape. The binding sites on the antibody bind with the complementary antigen to form an antibody-antigen complex, Hydrogen bonds (as well as van der
Show More

Related Documents: The importance of Hydrogen Bonds Essay

Dna Structure Essay

Title of Lab: DNA Models Objective: To identify the parts and importances of the DNA structure Questions: The three parts of DNA is the phosphate, sugar, and bases. The pieces that make up a nucleotide are a deoxyribose molecule, phosphate group, and a base. There are four bases found in a DNA molecule, including Thymine, Adenine, Guanine, and Cytosine. In base pairing, Thymine always pairs with Adenine and Guanine pairs with Cytosine. These bases in nucleotides together in specific sequences…

Words 515 - Pages 3

water notes teacher Essay

polar molecules from each other – they are dissolved. Importance If molecules are dissolved they can move around and react with other molecules. This is the basis of most metabolic reactions in cytoplasm of cells. Water and Thermal stability Water does not change temperature easily. A large increase in heat energy results a relatively small rise in temperature. Energy is needed to break hydrogen bonds that form between water molecules. Importance This means that large bodies of water stay at fairly…

Words 422 - Pages 2

Types Of Chemical Bonds

Describe each of the following types of chemical bonds: Nonpolar covalent bonds Polar covalent bonds Ionic bonds Hydrogen bonds Select one of those types of bonds and describe a biologically-important molecule that is made of this type of bond (what atoms are involved? what is the biological importance of the molecule?) An important first step is to know what a chemical bond is. A chemical bond is just the attraction between atoms (the smallest unit of matter) which results in forming a chemical…

Words 744 - Pages 3

Nt1310 Unit 9 Lab Report

PART A: CARBOHYDRATES 1. What chemical elements compose carbohydrates? It composes of three elements which they are carbon, hydrogen and oxygen. 2. List AND define the three major GROUPS of carbohydrates. 1- Monosaccharides: consist of single sugar molecule it is also simple. 2- Disaccharides: consist of two sugar molecules joined together. 3- Polysaccharides: consist of eight…

Words 1147 - Pages 5

Essay on Chemistry of Food Science

quality, cost, if it is convenient and the diversity of the products. Food chemisrty involves the application of biochemistry, organic, pchem and analytical chemistry to improve the understanding and manipulation of foods and their components. The importance of food chemistry is to ensure food quality, nutrition and safety. Food is created in two methods: the traditional method and technology method. The advantages of using technology to make food are: save time, cost, more production, better appearance…

Words 1760 - Pages 8

The Biological Importance of Water Essay

Biological Importance of Water Water is essential to us humans and all other living organisms, without it life on Earth would not exist. Water as a molecule is quite peculiar and it is its unusual properties that give it the ability to sustain life. Water has the molecular formula of H2O, this means that there are two Hydrogen atoms (H) and one oxygen atom (O). The water molecules layout could be described as a Mickey Mouse head; the face being the oxygen molecule and the ears being the hydrogen molecules…

Words 1363 - Pages 6

Biology: Dna and Covalent Bonds Essay

vs. covalent bonds. (Na+Cl-) and (C2H6) Ionic bonds – opposite charges attract Ionic bonds between ions create compounds Covalent bonds – sharing of electrons Covalent bonds between atoms create molecules Polar vs. non-polar covalent bonds Polar – unequal sharing of electrons Nonpolar – equal sharing of electrons Hydrogen bonding and characteristics of water; cohesion, Large heat capacity, Lower density as a solid, and good solvent. Hydrogen bonds hold polar molecules…

Words 848 - Pages 4

Oils and Fats Essay

using three ester bonds. However, they vary from one to another in terms of how long the carbon chains are and how many (if any) double bonds there are, which affects how many hydrogen atoms are attached to them. Some consist completely of single bonds between the carbon atoms but some have double bonds reducing the number of hydrogen that are present. Hydrolysis is a type of chemical reaction that occurs between water and another compound. During the reaction, chemical bonds are broken in both…

Words 663 - Pages 3

The Importance Of Water

the presence of water. The importance of water is so ample that it is the core of human and animal life, and the very essence for a stable environment. Water is an abundant resource on the earth, making up the majority of the world. There are some physical properties that make water one of the most essential elements for life on earth, most of its physical properties cause an interest to biologists because of its unique molecular configuration, H2O, which is two hydrogen atoms bonded to a single oxygen…

Words 920 - Pages 4

Carbon and Intermolecular Forces Essay

consisting of C-C and C-H bonds to which functional groups are attached. • Structural features of a functional group include: • Heteroatoms—atoms other than carbon or hydrogen. • π Bonds most commonly occur in C-C and C-O double bonds. 2 Functional Groups • Functional groups distinguish one organic molecule from another. • They determine a molecule’s: • geometry • physical properties • reactivity 3 Reactivity of Functional Groups • Heteroatoms and π bonds confer reactivity on a particular…

Words 1729 - Pages 7