MCAT Bio/Biochem study guide
MCAT Bio/Biochem · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
The MCAT Biological and Biochemical Foundations of Living Systems section is the bio/biochem portion of the Medical College Admission Test, the standardized exam the AAMC administers for people preparing to apply to medical school. The AAMC reports that roughly 95,000 people per year take the MCAT exam, and that aspiring doctors apply to medical school through its AMCAS program. This section tests how well you reason with living systems at the molecular and cellular level rather than how much trivia you have memorized. Our practice content is organized into four domains of equal weight: biomolecules and the chemistry of living systems; cells and cell division; structure and function of proteins and enzymes; and bioenergetics and metabolism. The MCAT Bio/Biochem study guide has 4 sections and about 1,098 words.
01Biomolecules and the Chemistry of Living Systems
Life is built from a small set of monomer families: amino acids (proteins), nucleotides (nucleic acids), monosaccharides (carbohydrates), and fatty acids/glycerol (lipids). Know the functional groups (hydroxyl, carboxyl, amino, phosphate, sulfhydryl, carbonyl) and how they drive hydrogen bonding, polarity, and solubility.
306 words, about 2 min02Cells and Cell Division
Know the major organelles and their functions: nucleus (genome), mitochondria (oxidative phosphorylation, own DNA), rough ER (protein synthesis/folding), smooth ER (lipid synthesis, detox), Golgi (sorting/modification), lysosomes (acidic degradation), ribosomes (translation). Understand the cell cycle: interphase (G1, S, G2) and M phase (mitosis plus cytokinesis).
271 words, about 1 min03Structure and Function of Proteins and Enzymes
Proteins fold into shapes determined by sequence and environment; function follows structure. Enzymes lower activation energy without changing reaction equilibrium or ΔG.
257 words, about 1 min04Bioenergetics and Metabolism
Understand free energy: reactions with negative ΔG are spontaneous (exergonic); positive ΔG is nonspontaneous (endergonic). ATP hydrolysis is exergonic and couples to endergonic reactions.
264 words, about 1 min