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MCAT Biochemistry Questions

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Biochemistry Subjects To Study For The MCAT are:
Amino Acids, Peptides and Proteins
Biological Membranes
Carbohydrate metabolism
Carbohydrate structure
DNA and RNA
Enzymes
Lipids and lipid metabolism
Nonenzymatic proteins
Regulation of metabolism

MCAT Biochemistry Questions

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25 Questions

1. Chylomicrons and VLDL are primarily [triacylglycerol or cholesterol] carriers?

2. What is Ketolysis?

3. What is catabolism?

4. What is an exergonic reaction?

Breaking things downKetolysis is the breaking down of ketone bodies for energy. 3-Hydroxybutyrate is picked up by the mitochondria of the needy tissue and oxidized to acetoacetate, releasing NADH. Acetoacetate (the picked up versions and the newly oxidized versions) are activated by succinyl-CoA Acetoacetyl-CoA transferase (commonly called thiophorase) to make Acetoacetyl-CoA, which can be cleaved into two molecules of Acetyl CoA. Ingeniously, the liver does not have thiophorase, meaning it can never burn the ketone bodies it produces. This helps the liver serve its purpose as an energy supplier to the rest of the body.Chylomicrons and VLDL are primarily triacylglycerol carriers?An exergonic reaction is a reaction in which Delta G is negative, and energy is spontaneously given off.

5. Generally speaking, cofactors are [organic molecules or inorganic and metal ions?]

Generally speaking, cofactors are inorganic or metal ionsChylomicrons and VLDL are primarily triacylglycerol carriers?Ketolysis is the breaking down of ketone bodies for energy. 3-Hydroxybutyrate is picked up by the mitochondria of the needy tissue and oxidized to acetoacetate, releasing NADH. Acetoacetate (the picked up versions and the newly oxidized versions) are activated by succinyl-CoA Acetoacetyl-CoA transferase (commonly called thiophorase) to make Acetoacetyl-CoA, which can be cleaved into two molecules of Acetyl CoA. Ingeniously, the liver does not have thiophorase, meaning it can never burn the ketone bodies it produces. This helps the liver serve its purpose as an energy supplier to the rest of the body.Breaking things down

6. What are the three main metabolic states?

Breaking things downChylomicrons and VLDL are primarily triacylglycerol carriers?1. Postprandial (well-fed) state. 2. Postabsorptive (fasting) state. 3. Starving state.Ketolysis is the breaking down of ketone bodies for energy. 3-Hydroxybutyrate is picked up by the mitochondria of the needy tissue and oxidized to acetoacetate, releasing NADH. Acetoacetate (the picked up versions and the newly oxidized versions) are activated by succinyl-CoA Acetoacetyl-CoA transferase (commonly called thiophorase) to make Acetoacetyl-CoA, which can be cleaved into two molecules of Acetyl CoA. Ingeniously, the liver does not have thiophorase, meaning it can never burn the ketone bodies it produces. This helps the liver serve its purpose as an energy supplier to the rest of the body.

7. What is a polypeptide?

8. Describe the inner mitochondrial membrane.

A selectively permeable membrane with cristae and important metabolic enzymes.Chylomicrons and VLDL are primarily triacylglycerol carriers?Breaking things downKetolysis is the breaking down of ketone bodies for energy. 3-Hydroxybutyrate is picked up by the mitochondria of the needy tissue and oxidized to acetoacetate, releasing NADH. Acetoacetate (the picked up versions and the newly oxidized versions) are activated by succinyl-CoA Acetoacetyl-CoA transferase (commonly called thiophorase) to make Acetoacetyl-CoA, which can be cleaved into two molecules of Acetyl CoA. Ingeniously, the liver does not have thiophorase, meaning it can never burn the ketone bodies it produces. This helps the liver serve its purpose as an energy supplier to the rest of the body.

9. What is a hemiacetal?

10. Describe the metabolic changes associated with the Postabsorptive state.

Ketolysis is the breaking down of ketone bodies for energy. 3-Hydroxybutyrate is picked up by the mitochondria of the needy tissue and oxidized to acetoacetate, releasing NADH. Acetoacetate (the picked up versions and the newly oxidized versions) are activated by succinyl-CoA Acetoacetyl-CoA transferase (commonly called thiophorase) to make Acetoacetyl-CoA, which can be cleaved into two molecules of Acetyl CoA. Ingeniously, the liver does not have thiophorase, meaning it can never burn the ketone bodies it produces. This helps the liver serve its purpose as an energy supplier to the rest of the body.In the postabsorptive state, glycogen is degraded in the liver and released into the blood to fuel other tissues. Gluconeogenesis in the liver also helps to make glucose for the body, albeit much more slowly and over time. The release of amino acids from proteins and fatty acids from adipose tissue are both stimulated by the decrease in insulin and the presence of counterregulatory hormones. Again, the point is to make glucose so these get shuttled to gluconeogenic pathways in the liver.Chylomicrons and VLDL are primarily triacylglycerol carriers?Breaking things down

11. What does it mean to say a fatty acid is activated?

In order to start the process of fatty acid catabolism, the fatty acid in question must first be activated by fatty-acyl-CoA Synthetase. This enzyme attaches a CoA to the fatty acid.Ketolysis is the breaking down of ketone bodies for energy. 3-Hydroxybutyrate is picked up by the mitochondria of the needy tissue and oxidized to acetoacetate, releasing NADH. Acetoacetate (the picked up versions and the newly oxidized versions) are activated by succinyl-CoA Acetoacetyl-CoA transferase (commonly called thiophorase) to make Acetoacetyl-CoA, which can be cleaved into two molecules of Acetyl CoA. Ingeniously, the liver does not have thiophorase, meaning it can never burn the ketone bodies it produces. This helps the liver serve its purpose as an energy supplier to the rest of the body.Chylomicrons and VLDL are primarily triacylglycerol carriers?Breaking things down

12. What is a vector in the context of DNA Biotechnology?

A vector is usually a bacterial or viral plasmid that can be transferred to a host bacterium.Ketolysis is the breaking down of ketone bodies for energy. 3-Hydroxybutyrate is picked up by the mitochondria of the needy tissue and oxidized to acetoacetate, releasing NADH. Acetoacetate (the picked up versions and the newly oxidized versions) are activated by succinyl-CoA Acetoacetyl-CoA transferase (commonly called thiophorase) to make Acetoacetyl-CoA, which can be cleaved into two molecules of Acetyl CoA. Ingeniously, the liver does not have thiophorase, meaning it can never burn the ketone bodies it produces. This helps the liver serve its purpose as an energy supplier to the rest of the body.Breaking things downChylomicrons and VLDL are primarily triacylglycerol carriers?

13. What are Aspartic Acid's structure, character, three letter abbreviation, and one letter abbreviation?

An acidic/negatively charged amino acid.Chylomicrons and VLDL are primarily triacylglycerol carriers?Breaking things downKetolysis is the breaking down of ketone bodies for energy. 3-Hydroxybutyrate is picked up by the mitochondria of the needy tissue and oxidized to acetoacetate, releasing NADH. Acetoacetate (the picked up versions and the newly oxidized versions) are activated by succinyl-CoA Acetoacetyl-CoA transferase (commonly called thiophorase) to make Acetoacetyl-CoA, which can be cleaved into two molecules of Acetyl CoA. Ingeniously, the liver does not have thiophorase, meaning it can never burn the ketone bodies it produces. This helps the liver serve its purpose as an energy supplier to the rest of the body.

14. What is the electron transport chain?

15. Describe Size Exclusion Chromatography

Ketolysis is the breaking down of ketone bodies for energy. 3-Hydroxybutyrate is picked up by the mitochondria of the needy tissue and oxidized to acetoacetate, releasing NADH. Acetoacetate (the picked up versions and the newly oxidized versions) are activated by succinyl-CoA Acetoacetyl-CoA transferase (commonly called thiophorase) to make Acetoacetyl-CoA, which can be cleaved into two molecules of Acetyl CoA. Ingeniously, the liver does not have thiophorase, meaning it can never burn the ketone bodies it produces. This helps the liver serve its purpose as an energy supplier to the rest of the body.Breaking things downIn this method, the beads used in the column contain tiny mazes called pores inside of themselves of varying sizes. Small proteins that can enter the beads have to go through the pores, which makes them take a lot longer to get through the column. Large proteins can't fit into the pores, and so they just go around and elute faster.Chylomicrons and VLDL are primarily triacylglycerol carriers?

16. What effect do the glucocorticoids have on metabolism?

Ketolysis is the breaking down of ketone bodies for energy. 3-Hydroxybutyrate is picked up by the mitochondria of the needy tissue and oxidized to acetoacetate, releasing NADH. Acetoacetate (the picked up versions and the newly oxidized versions) are activated by succinyl-CoA Acetoacetyl-CoA transferase (commonly called thiophorase) to make Acetoacetyl-CoA, which can be cleaved into two molecules of Acetyl CoA. Ingeniously, the liver does not have thiophorase, meaning it can never burn the ketone bodies it produces. This helps the liver serve its purpose as an energy supplier to the rest of the body.Chylomicrons and VLDL are primarily triacylglycerol carriers?Breaking things downRemember, cortisol's purpose is to increase blood glucose levels. All these effects can rationalized just because they are all things that lead to more sugar in the blood. Cortisol blocks uptake of sugar by cells. Cortisol increases gluconeogenesis in the liver, especially the gluconeogenesis associated with breaking down proteins.

17. How does the rate of a reaction relate to the amount of enzyme and substrate?

Ketolysis is the breaking down of ketone bodies for energy. 3-Hydroxybutyrate is picked up by the mitochondria of the needy tissue and oxidized to acetoacetate, releasing NADH. Acetoacetate (the picked up versions and the newly oxidized versions) are activated by succinyl-CoA Acetoacetyl-CoA transferase (commonly called thiophorase) to make Acetoacetyl-CoA, which can be cleaved into two molecules of Acetyl CoA. Ingeniously, the liver does not have thiophorase, meaning it can never burn the ketone bodies it produces. This helps the liver serve its purpose as an energy supplier to the rest of the body.Breaking things downChylomicrons and VLDL are primarily triacylglycerol carriers?If you have 10 Enzyme molecule and 1 substrate molecule, that means only 1 enzyme is actually interacting with the substrate and speeding up the reaction, and so there will be a small increase in the speed of the reaction. Conversely, if you have 10 enzyme molecules and 10 substrate molecules, that means all 10 enzymes are speeding up the reaction, which translates to an increased rate. However, if you have 10 enzymes and 11 substrate molecules, that means all 10 enzymes are already speeding up the reaction, and adding more substrate will not affect the speed of the reaction.

18. What is an Isomerase?

Breaking things downChylomicrons and VLDL are primarily triacylglycerol carriers?Catalyzes the rearrangement of bonds within a molecule. An isomerase, depending on how it accomplishes this, can also be considered an oxioreductase, transferase, etc. Note: Isomerase are important for catalzying reactions between stereoisomers as well as constitutional isomers.Ketolysis is the breaking down of ketone bodies for energy. 3-Hydroxybutyrate is picked up by the mitochondria of the needy tissue and oxidized to acetoacetate, releasing NADH. Acetoacetate (the picked up versions and the newly oxidized versions) are activated by succinyl-CoA Acetoacetyl-CoA transferase (commonly called thiophorase) to make Acetoacetyl-CoA, which can be cleaved into two molecules of Acetyl CoA. Ingeniously, the liver does not have thiophorase, meaning it can never burn the ketone bodies it produces. This helps the liver serve its purpose as an energy supplier to the rest of the body.

19. What is a glycerophospholipid?

Breaking things downA class of phospholipids. It contains all the lipids with hydrophobic tails attached to a glycerol backbone, attached to a phosphate, and then attached to some kind of head group. The head group is the unique part of a glycerophospholipid, and so the name of the molecule is based on the head group. In the example below, choline is the head group, but it can be other things.Chylomicrons and VLDL are primarily triacylglycerol carriers?Ketolysis is the breaking down of ketone bodies for energy. 3-Hydroxybutyrate is picked up by the mitochondria of the needy tissue and oxidized to acetoacetate, releasing NADH. Acetoacetate (the picked up versions and the newly oxidized versions) are activated by succinyl-CoA Acetoacetyl-CoA transferase (commonly called thiophorase) to make Acetoacetyl-CoA, which can be cleaved into two molecules of Acetyl CoA. Ingeniously, the liver does not have thiophorase, meaning it can never burn the ketone bodies it produces. This helps the liver serve its purpose as an energy supplier to the rest of the body.

20. Describe an Inducible System operon?

Breaking things downIn an inducible system, an ever-present repressor protein (coded for by the regulator) binds to the operator and stops RNA polymerase from transcribing it. However, if an inducer is present, then it will bind to the repressor and stop it from repressing the gene. This allows the operon to be transcribed. This is useful because it ties transcription of these genes to the presence of a specific molecule, which means that the gene is only on when the cell feels like it is needed. The classic inducible system is the lac operon, an operon that allows bacteria to digest lactose when it is in high enough concentrations.Chylomicrons and VLDL are primarily triacylglycerol carriers?Ketolysis is the breaking down of ketone bodies for energy. 3-Hydroxybutyrate is picked up by the mitochondria of the needy tissue and oxidized to acetoacetate, releasing NADH. Acetoacetate (the picked up versions and the newly oxidized versions) are activated by succinyl-CoA Acetoacetyl-CoA transferase (commonly called thiophorase) to make Acetoacetyl-CoA, which can be cleaved into two molecules of Acetyl CoA. Ingeniously, the liver does not have thiophorase, meaning it can never burn the ketone bodies it produces. This helps the liver serve its purpose as an energy supplier to the rest of the body.

21. What are Glutamic Acid's structure, character, three letter abbreviation, and one letter abbreviation?

Breaking things downAn acidic/negatively charged amino acid.Chylomicrons and VLDL are primarily triacylglycerol carriers?Ketolysis is the breaking down of ketone bodies for energy. 3-Hydroxybutyrate is picked up by the mitochondria of the needy tissue and oxidized to acetoacetate, releasing NADH. Acetoacetate (the picked up versions and the newly oxidized versions) are activated by succinyl-CoA Acetoacetyl-CoA transferase (commonly called thiophorase) to make Acetoacetyl-CoA, which can be cleaved into two molecules of Acetyl CoA. Ingeniously, the liver does not have thiophorase, meaning it can never burn the ketone bodies it produces. This helps the liver serve its purpose as an energy supplier to the rest of the body.

22. What is the stationary phase in chromatography?

23. What is glycogenolysis?

24. Describe a Repressible System operon

Chylomicrons and VLDL are primarily triacylglycerol carriers?Ketolysis is the breaking down of ketone bodies for energy. 3-Hydroxybutyrate is picked up by the mitochondria of the needy tissue and oxidized to acetoacetate, releasing NADH. Acetoacetate (the picked up versions and the newly oxidized versions) are activated by succinyl-CoA Acetoacetyl-CoA transferase (commonly called thiophorase) to make Acetoacetyl-CoA, which can be cleaved into two molecules of Acetyl CoA. Ingeniously, the liver does not have thiophorase, meaning it can never burn the ketone bodies it produces. This helps the liver serve its purpose as an energy supplier to the rest of the body.In a repressible system, an ever-present repressor protein (coded for by the regulator) cannot bind to the operator on its own, so RNA polymerase can transcribe it. However, if a co-repressor is present, then it will bind the repressor and allow it to repress the gene. This stops the operon from being transcribed. This is useful because it ties transcription of these genes to the presence of a specific molecule, which means that the gene gets turned off when the cell feels its no longer needed. The classic repressible system is the trp operon, an operon that allows bacteria to synthesize trp when it is low in the cell.Breaking things down

25. What is saponification?

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25 Questions

❤ If you liked Fatskills, consider supporting us by checking out The Life Manuals You Never Got.

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All trademarks, logos and brand names are the property of their respective owners. All company, product and service names used in this website are for identification purposes only. Use of these names, trademarks and brands does not imply endorsement.

About | Explore | User Guide | Topics | Subjects | Doubt Solver | Career Aptitude Test | Answers | Free Tools | What Should We Know?
Privacy | Terms |

Without work one finishes nothing. - Ralph Waldo Emerson
© 2026 Fatskills.com