ACS Biochemistry Exam 2026
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Metabolism (catabolism and anabolism) - 🧠 ANSWER ✔✔Metabolism: sum
of total chemical reactions in an organism, also the method by which cells
extract and use energy from their environment.
Catabolism: The process by which stored nutrients and ingested foods are
converted to a usable form of energy. It produces simple products CO2,
,H2O, NH3, and building blocks such as sugars and fats that are used in
anabolism.
Anabolism: the process by which simple products and building blocks of
catabolism are used to create complex biological products that contribute to
organismal growth and development. It also uses the energy produced in
catabolism to do biological work.
Properties of cells - 🧠 ANSWER ✔✔Metabolism: undergoing catabolic and
anabolic processes.
Reproduction: cell populations grow via asexual reproduction.
Mutation: during growth and reproduction, cells sometimes make mistakes,
leading to mutations and evolution.
Respond to environment: metabolic pathways respond to signals, including
light, touch, hormones, and nutrients, that can turn the pathways on or off.
,Speed and efficiency: cell operations are highly specific to maximize
targeting and efficiency.
Similar building blocks: most species are very similar at the cellular level.
What accounts for water's unique properties? - 🧠 ANSWER ✔✔Hydrogen
bonding
The unique properties of water (specific heat, heat of vaporization,
solubility) - 🧠 ANSWER ✔✔1) high specific heat, or heat required to raise
the temperature of the unit mass of a given substance by one degree.
For water to increase in temperature, water molecules must be made to
move faster, or get higher KE, and doing this requires breaking hydrogen
bonds, which absorbs heat. So, as heat is applied, most of it goes to
breaking the bonds not upregulating KE, thus making water harder to heat
than substances where no bonds need to be broken.
2) High heat of vaporization, or the amount of heat needed to turn one g of
a liquid into vapor, without a temperature rise in the liquid. Important for
COPYRIGHT©NINJANERD 2025/2026. YEAR PUBLISHED 2025. COMPANY REGISTRATION NUMBER: 619652435. TERMS OF USE. PRIVACY
STATEMENT. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
3
, sweat because it ensures that when the liquid evaporates from our skin, the
heat required for the transition is kept in the gas, causing a net cooling
effect on the skin.
3) Unique solubility properties: "like dissolves like". Water dissolves polar
molecules and ions, and can act as an H-bond donor or receptor
4) Amphoteric, it can act as an acid (donating electrons) or a base
(accepting electrons). The conjugate acid of water is the hydronium ion,
H3O+, and the conjugate base of water is the hydroxide ion, OH-.
Keq for water at 25 degrees C and in pure water - 🧠 ANSWER ✔✔At 25
degrees C:
Keq= Kw= [OH-][H3O+]= 1*10^-14
In pure water:
[OH-]=[H3O+]= 1*10^-7
Calculation for pH and pKa - 🧠 ANSWER ✔✔pH= -log[H3O+]
Expert Verified | Ace the Test
Metabolism (catabolism and anabolism) - 🧠 ANSWER ✔✔Metabolism: sum
of total chemical reactions in an organism, also the method by which cells
extract and use energy from their environment.
Catabolism: The process by which stored nutrients and ingested foods are
converted to a usable form of energy. It produces simple products CO2,
,H2O, NH3, and building blocks such as sugars and fats that are used in
anabolism.
Anabolism: the process by which simple products and building blocks of
catabolism are used to create complex biological products that contribute to
organismal growth and development. It also uses the energy produced in
catabolism to do biological work.
Properties of cells - 🧠 ANSWER ✔✔Metabolism: undergoing catabolic and
anabolic processes.
Reproduction: cell populations grow via asexual reproduction.
Mutation: during growth and reproduction, cells sometimes make mistakes,
leading to mutations and evolution.
Respond to environment: metabolic pathways respond to signals, including
light, touch, hormones, and nutrients, that can turn the pathways on or off.
,Speed and efficiency: cell operations are highly specific to maximize
targeting and efficiency.
Similar building blocks: most species are very similar at the cellular level.
What accounts for water's unique properties? - 🧠 ANSWER ✔✔Hydrogen
bonding
The unique properties of water (specific heat, heat of vaporization,
solubility) - 🧠 ANSWER ✔✔1) high specific heat, or heat required to raise
the temperature of the unit mass of a given substance by one degree.
For water to increase in temperature, water molecules must be made to
move faster, or get higher KE, and doing this requires breaking hydrogen
bonds, which absorbs heat. So, as heat is applied, most of it goes to
breaking the bonds not upregulating KE, thus making water harder to heat
than substances where no bonds need to be broken.
2) High heat of vaporization, or the amount of heat needed to turn one g of
a liquid into vapor, without a temperature rise in the liquid. Important for
COPYRIGHT©NINJANERD 2025/2026. YEAR PUBLISHED 2025. COMPANY REGISTRATION NUMBER: 619652435. TERMS OF USE. PRIVACY
STATEMENT. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
3
, sweat because it ensures that when the liquid evaporates from our skin, the
heat required for the transition is kept in the gas, causing a net cooling
effect on the skin.
3) Unique solubility properties: "like dissolves like". Water dissolves polar
molecules and ions, and can act as an H-bond donor or receptor
4) Amphoteric, it can act as an acid (donating electrons) or a base
(accepting electrons). The conjugate acid of water is the hydronium ion,
H3O+, and the conjugate base of water is the hydroxide ion, OH-.
Keq for water at 25 degrees C and in pure water - 🧠 ANSWER ✔✔At 25
degrees C:
Keq= Kw= [OH-][H3O+]= 1*10^-14
In pure water:
[OH-]=[H3O+]= 1*10^-7
Calculation for pH and pKa - 🧠 ANSWER ✔✔pH= -log[H3O+]
