Tuesday, January 26, 2010
What is biochemistry, and how does it differ from the fields of genetics, biology, chemistry, and molecular biology?
Biochemistry is the study of molecular nature of life processes. In living cells, many chemical reactions can take place simultaneously, therefore, biochemistry focuses more on the functions and structures of bimolecular (such as proteins, carbohydrates, nucleic acids and lipids) and how these compounds conduct the chemical reactions through a series of catalytic reactions that take place in cell metabolism and the endocrine system. The disciplines for biochemistry are grouped with the fields of genetics, biology, chemistry, and molecular biology, however, manages to build on its own area of importance. Genetics works on seeking and understanding the process of inheritance and goes in great detail on genes and regions to correspond with DNA molecules. Biology differs in a more broad way compared to biochemistry because it studies the natural science of a living organism and the many necessities needed to live including the concepts of cell theory and evolution. Chemistry differs from biochemistry because it lays out the importance of structure and chemical behavior relating to matter and atomic level while biochemistry mainly focuses on the substances found in biochemical organisms. Molecular biology concerns itself with molecular interactions within cellular systems and goes into the understanding as how these interactions are regulated. Although all these areas of study can be compared and interpreted with biochemistry, biochemistry still maintains its main focus on the processes of a living organism as well as molecules and macromolecules
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I like the way that this entry is presented. I feel like this is a balanced statement about just what Biochemistry is and is not. The perspective feels well researched and thorough.
ReplyDeleteThis blog does a good job of categorizing the ever increasing complexity and overlap of the various scientific disciplines.
MCB
Thank you Michael. I'm glad you were able to relate to this as well as you did and liked it just as much. I did have to do some research for this (shhhhhhh) but I think it helped me out in the end because, like you said, it does give a better perspective due to the fact I am able to go more in depth.
ReplyDelete