1,699 Answered Questions for the topic biochemistry

Biochemistry

07/16/19

Why doesn't life produce diamond, graphene, nanotubes, etc? Could it?
It seems that life is really good at assembling carbon into extremely complicated molecules (e.g. DNA). Graphene is stronger than any materials currently used by biology. Diamond is harder than any... more
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07/15/19

Can we investigate the cell biology of extinct microorganisms?
I know that there are microfossils, but not if we can we know about the organelles, genetics or macromolecules of the cells that left them behind.
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Biochemistry Microbiology Enzymes

07/12/19

Does alpha-amylase from different species have different *optimal* conditions?
Do the optimal conditions for the enzyme isoforms differ between species? Specifically, do the optimal pH and temperature for alpha-amylase differ for that enzyme produced by *B. lichiniformis* and... more
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Biochemistry Physiology

07/12/19

Does NADH inhibit gluconeogenesis?
I was told in a physiology lecture that alcohol inhibits gluconeogenesis because 'NADH produced from ethanol catabolism leads to product inhibition'.But is NADH not a reactant coenzyme of... more
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Biochemistry Nutrition Amino Acids

07/12/19

What are 'acid stable' amino acids?
I tend to see terms `amino acid`, `acid stable amino acid`, and `free amino acids` used often in the field of nutrition, but they are sometimes used interchangeably which confuses me. I know that:-... more
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07/11/19

Can bacteria metabolize fatty acids for fuel?
I'm not a microbiologist, but rather a physiologist curious about microbial metabolism. Much like humans bacteria can utilize glucose, but when it comes to long chain, medium chain, or short chain... more
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07/11/19

Calculating Percent Yield Question
Aluminum oxide is produced in a single replacement reaction between aluminum and chromium (II) oxide. Calculate the percent yield if 603.0g of chromium(II) oxide were used with 422.5g of aluminum... more
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Biochemistry Thermodynamics Metabolism

07/10/19

What is an irreversible reaction?
There are reactions with large Delta G negative values. Why these reactions are irreversible? As in: out of 10 steps of Glycolysis, 3 are irreversible steps. I need an explanation for why they are... more
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07/10/19

Why restriction enzymes cut (usually) at palindromic sequences?
Restriction enzymes usually cut only at palindromic sequences. Is there any specific reason for that ? Is there any advantage for bacteria if it cuts up virus at this type of sequences ?
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07/10/19

What is the difference between a protein and a factor?
In terms of nomenclature/semantics, why are some proteins named proteins, and some named factors?I've been revising on eukaryotic DNA, and I've come across some proteins that seem to serve roughly... more
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Biochemistry Hematology

07/09/19

When giving blood, what is the specific Iron measurement they take?
I went to give blood the other day, and they take an "iron" measurement prior to actually drawing the blood. My level was 16.4 -- but what specific type of iron were they measuring? I've heard of... more
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Biochemistry Proteins

07/09/19

Why is absorbance at 280 nm for protein solution going up when I measure repeatedly?
I have been measuring my protein solutions' concentrations by diluting them in water 20 fold with a final volume of 100 uL and then measuring the absorbances of these solutions in 96 well plates... more
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07/09/19

What is an aromatic cage and what does it do?
Epigenetics, 2. ed, Chapter 3.6:> Similarly, methylated lysine residues embedded in histone tails can be> read by “aromatic cages” present in chromodomains, or similar domains> (e.g., MBT,... more
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07/08/19

Why are enzyme-catalysed reactions slower at lower substrate concentration?
Suppose I'm using 200 nmoles of enzyme and 2 mmoles of substrate. The enzyme should be saturated but if I use 50 mmoles of substrate, the reaction will be faster. Why?I just can't get it! Even at... more
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Biochemistry Fruit Food

07/08/19

What exactly makes bananas go brown?
I know that often oxidation processes are mentioned when referring to the color change from yellow to brown in bananas (specifically: those that you get everywhere in supermarkets, with no... more
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Biochemistry Hematology Red Blood Cell

07/08/19

Why do red blood cells maintain Iron in the Haem group in the +2 (ferrous) oxidation state?
A lot of sources tell me that RBCs contain a number of enzymes, and that these serve multiple functions from maintaining the structure and elasticity of the corpuscle wall, to preventing the... more
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07/05/19

Is there a reliable source for storage and stability of reducing agents like DTT?
Reading the literature on DTT, one is confronted with a confusing mass of papers; some claim that a 1M solution in water is stable, other papers say it is not. I use the reaction with DTNB to show... more
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Biochemistry Cellular Respiration

07/05/19

How is respiration an unbalanced equation?
The equation for respiration is... more
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07/05/19

What biological processes cause leaves to change colours in Autumn?
I am curious to learn what are the biological mechanisms that cause leaves of deciduous plants to change colour? What happens to the chlorophyll?What environmental phenomena (temperature/air... more
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07/03/19

Why can't you just take a vitamin? Why you need a healthy diet on top of that?
From what I understand, your body needs certain amounts of vitamins and minerals to maintain health. Why can't we just take enough pills to obtain these vitamins and minerals?
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Biochemistry Literature Cell Biology

07/03/19

Is there a difference in cytoplasmic pH between prokaryotes and eukaryotes?
The cytosolic pH in human cells is [around 7.4, but fluctuates as the cell is replicating](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2114443/). Prokaryotes and eukaryotes are vastly different in... more
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Biochemistry Metabolism Glucose

07/03/19

Why is GTP, not ATP, produced in Gluconeogenesis & TCA Cycle?
In both gluconeogenesis and the TCA cycle, there is a point in each that GTP is produced instead of the usual ATP. My question is why GTP and not ATP for these 2 specific steps?
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Biochemistry

07/02/19

What would happen if Carbon-14 was in a glucose molecule and decayed into Nitrogen?
This interested me because of Melvin Calvin's experiment with photosynthesis where he used radioactive Carbon-14. If a plant used it as a reactant to make glucose, and that Carbon-14 decayed into... more
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Biochemistry Cell Biology

07/02/19

When collecting cell lysates for a Western blot, how do I induce di-sulfide bonds?
I would like to conduct a simple dimerization experiment for some protein I'm collecting from a cultured cells. My thought is, that if I'm running a non-reducing, denaturing PAGE gel, then removing... more
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Biochemistry Enzymes

07/02/19

How can facultative anaerobes exist without catalase?
>Catalase-negative bacteria may be anaerobes, or they may be **facultative anaerobes** that only ferment and do not respire using oxygen as a terminal electron acceptor<br />A facultative... more
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