Structural Biochemistry/What is Structural Biochemistry?

Overview Structural Biochemistry is a subdivision of biochemistry mainly focused on the components, structures and functions of molecules within cells that make up the living organisms. Biochemistry attempts to explain the phenomenon of life in chemical terms by using various theories in Chemistry and the laws of Physics. Structural biochemistry concentrates on the study of macromolecules Carbohydrates Monomers : Monosaccharides Proteins Monomers : Amino Acids Lipids Monomers : Fatty Acids and Glycerol Nucleic Acids (DNA & RNA) Monomers : Nucleotides Examples of laboratory techniques to study macromolecules For separation of protein Gel-Filtration Chromatography Ion-Exchange Chromatography Affinity Chromatography High-Pressure Liquid Chromatography Biotechnology to study DNA & RNA Restriction-enzyme analysis Blotting techniques:Northern Blotting and Southern Blotting DNA sequencing Solid-phase synthesis of nucleic acids Polymerase chain reaction (PCR)