Chemical Forums
Chemistry Forums for Students => Organic Chemistry Forum => Topic started by: JNP on June 20, 2007, 11:09:37 AM
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I hope someone can answer this question. I am not a chemist so this may be quite silly, so please pardon my ignorance. I have data on the amount of lipid (grams) and protein (grams) in an animal and would like to convert it to carbon. Is that possible? Is there a general stoichiometry for lipids and proteins like there is for carbohydrates (C6H12O6)?
i would be extremely thankful to anyone who could help me out ...
JNP
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There is no general formula for carbohydrates (cellulose is carbohydrate, yet its formula is (C6H10O5)n, clearly different from the one you have posted). Same holds for lipids and proteins.
You may try to calculate things using assumption that carbon is - say - 55% of protein mass (it holds for hemoglobine C2952H4664N812O832S8Fe4, it will be about OK for other proteins as well) and about 75% of fat.
Please do not hijack threads.
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thank-you. can you recommend a reference for 55% of protein is Carbon and 75% of lipid is carbon?
sorry to steal a thread..i didn't know how to post a question.
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Simply start new topic. There is such a button somewhere on your screen when you are logged and browse chemicalforums :)
No reference, unless you dare to quote my previous post. However, if you start with formula for hemoglobine and calculate its molar mass, and then you check how much carbon does one mole of hemoglobine contain, you will get to the same number I have posted. It holds only statistically - ie only assuming that other proteins have similar ratio of aminoacids used, which is most likely close enough to reality. I have used similar approach to find out number for fat, starting with the formula C55H98O6.
In many places you will be not allowed to use wikipedia as reference. I wonder if taking an example formula for huge molecule will be treated this way.