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Lipids
Lipids are a group of biochemicals that are not soluble in water but soluble in
organic solvents such as chloroform and ether. The most common lipids in human
body are the fats, which primarily supply energy for cellular activities. Fat molecules are composed of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen but has a much smaller proportion of oxygen compared to carbohydrates.
Proteins
Proteins consist of atoms of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, and sometimes
sulfur that form the building blocks of protein called as amino acids. Proteins are
structural materials, chemical messengers, and energy sources for cells. Protein
misfolding can result in serious diseases.
Nucleic Acids
Nucleic acids carry the instructions that regulate a cell’s activities by encoding the
amino acid arrangements of proteins in its building blocks. Nucleic acids comprise
oxygen, hydrogen, carbon, phosphorus, and nitrogen atoms, which form the building blocks termed as nucleotides. Nucleic acids are of two types: deoxyribonucleic
acid (DNA) and ribonucleic acid (RNA). RNA, a single-stranded molecule, contains the sugar ribose while DNA, a double-stranded molecule, contains the sugar
deoxyribose. DNA is responsible for storing and transferring genetic information,
while RNA directly codes for amino acids and acts as a messenger between DNA
and ribosomes to make proteins.
Viruses contain either DNA or RNA (but not both), and a protein coat. Viral
replication occurs in seven stages in host cell during the infection process, namely:
1. Adsorption.
2. Entry.
3. Uncoating.
4. Transcription/mRNA production.
5. Synthesis of virus components.
6. Virion assembly.
7. Release.
As intracellular pathogens, viruses utilize various cellular structures and molecules for their propagation. Enveloped viruses attain lipid as their outer coat during
interactions with cellular membranes at the time of morphogenesis within, and leaving, infected cells. Non-enveloped viruses usually exit cells by cell lysis. Even
though lipid membranes are not part of the released non-enveloped virions, they
interact with lipid membranes during entry into target cells (Ono 2010).
Understanding chemistry would help in fighting against viral infections. For
example, alcohol-based sanitizers will disrupt the lipid layer, thus stopping the virus
to stick to the host cells. Soaps are effective to kill enveloped virus. Soap molecules
will have hydrophilic (attracted to water) and oleophilic (attracted to oil) tails.
Oleophilic tail portion of the soap molecule gets inserted into the envelope and
breaks the lipid envelope of the virus.
1 Fundamentals of Chemistry for Environmental and Medical Professionals
Lipids
Lipids are a group of biochemicals that are not soluble in water but soluble in
organic solvents such as chloroform and ether. The most common lipids in human
body are the fats, which primarily supply energy for cellular activities. Fat molecules are composed of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen but has a much smaller proportion of oxygen compared to carbohydrates.
Proteins
Proteins consist of atoms of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, and sometimes
sulfur that form the building blocks of protein called as amino acids. Proteins are
structural materials, chemical messengers, and energy sources for cells. Protein
misfolding can result in serious diseases.
Nucleic Acids
Nucleic acids carry the instructions that regulate a cell’s activities by encoding the
amino acid arrangements of proteins in its building blocks. Nucleic acids comprise
oxygen, hydrogen, carbon, phosphorus, and nitrogen atoms, which form the building blocks termed as nucleotides. Nucleic acids are of two types: deoxyribonucleic
acid (DNA) and ribonucleic acid (RNA). RNA, a single-stranded molecule, contains the sugar ribose while DNA, a double-stranded molecule, contains the sugar
deoxyribose. DNA is responsible for storing and transferring genetic information,
while RNA directly codes for amino acids and acts as a messenger between DNA
and ribosomes to make proteins.
Viruses contain either DNA or RNA (but not both), and a protein coat. Viral
replication occurs in seven stages in host cell during the infection process, namely:
1. Adsorption.
2. Entry.
3. Uncoating.
4. Transcription/mRNA production.
5. Synthesis of virus components.
6. Virion assembly.
7. Release.
As intracellular pathogens, viruses utilize various cellular structures and molecules for their propagation. Enveloped viruses attain lipid as their outer coat during
interactions with cellular membranes at the time of morphogenesis within, and leaving, infected cells. Non-enveloped viruses usually exit cells by cell lysis. Even
though lipid membranes are not part of the released non-enveloped virions, they
interact with lipid membranes during entry into target cells (Ono 2010).
Understanding chemistry would help in fighting against viral infections. For
example, alcohol-based sanitizers will disrupt the lipid layer, thus stopping the virus
to stick to the host cells. Soaps are effective to kill enveloped virus. Soap molecules
will have hydrophilic (attracted to water) and oleophilic (attracted to oil) tails.
Oleophilic tail portion of the soap molecule gets inserted into the envelope and
breaks the lipid envelope of the virus.
1 Fundamentals of Chemistry for Environmental and Medical Professionals