Essential and non-essential elements/types of essential elements-Bulk and trace elements/ Some important essential elements/their uses / role in biological processes. Prepared for my college-Kanya Maha Vidyalaya,Jalandhar.

1. Inorganic elements in the
chemistry of life.
PRESENTED BY: HARAMANPREET KAUR
B.SC. NON-MEDICAL S-4
207303

2. Essential and Non-Essential Elements
 Living bodies have about 40 elements depending upon the requirements and
their role in biological process. They are classified as : Essential and Non-
Essential Elements.
 Essential element has a specific role for maintaining normal living state of tissue
or body. Absence of deficiency of such elements will lead to serious damage to
the normal functioning of the living system
 Non-Essential element are those elements found in the living organism other
than essential elements.
 Essential elements play very important role in biological processes.

3. ESSENTIAL ELEMENTS..
 Essential Elements are the elements which are required for maintenance of life of
plants and animals.
 An element may be considered essential when its deficiency produces an
impairment of functions and when its restoration relives the impaired function.
 They play positive role in biological systems.
 Depending upon the quantity present in the body, they are further divided into :
A) BULK ELEMENTS
B) TRACE ELEMENTS

4. BULK ELEMENTS
 MACRO or BULK ELEMENTS are present more than 1 mg in our ďiet and they
constitue 60-80% of all inorganic minerals in the body. They are:
H
C O
N
Na
K
Ca
Mg
Fe
P
Cl

5. TRACE ELEMENTS
 MICRO or TRACE ELEMENTS are needed by the body in very small amounts in
micro or nanograms.
Cu Co
Zn
Mn F
Mo I

6. Non-Essential elements
 The elements found in the living organisms other than essential elements are
considered as non-essential elements.
 Its deficiency doesn’t effect the functioning of organisms.
Br Si Ni Pb V
Sn
Al
Ar
B Ti

7. Calcium and Magnesium
 Present as carbonates and phosphates in the skeletal structure of the mammals as about
99% of Ca2+ and 70% of Mg2+.
 Used in cell walls, bones and some cells as structural component.
 Calcium and magnesium are minerals that are both important for bone density and have
opposite effects on nerve, muscle and clotting activity.
 Magnesium is the fourth most abundant mineral in the body with 50 per cent in bone, 25
per cent in muscle and 24 per cent in other tissue and organs.
 Magnesium is needed for more than 300 biochemical reactions in chloroplast.
 Calcium plays a significant role in the metabolism of nitrogen in plants. Absence of this
mineral in the plants affects the size and number of chloroplasts.
 Magnesium is the powerhouse behind photosynthesis in plants.
 Mg2+ ions form complex with ATP. It has been observed that all transphosphorylation
reactions involving ATP proceeds smoothly in the presence of Mg2+.
i

8. Sodium and Potassium
 Sodium and potassium are essential for life processes. We need at
least 1 g of sodium ion per day in our diet.
 In inorganic, sodium and potassium are similar. However in
biology, it is the difference between sodium and potassium.
 Cell pump out sodium ions of the cytoplasm whereas the cells
pump the potassium inside. This ion transport is called sodium
pump.
 The difference in concentrations of ions inside and outside the
cells produce an electrical potential which is important for the
functioning of nerve and muscle cells.
 The transport of ions require energy and this energy provided by
hydrolysis of ATP(Adenosine triphosphate).

9. Iron-An Essential trace element.
 Iron is essential in small amounts for both plants and animals life.
 Most important transition element and found in greatest abundance in biological
systems in the form of porphyrin complexes or hemes such as hemoglobin and
myoglobin.
 A human body weighing about 70 kg contains about 4.3 g of iron.
 70% in hemoglobin , 3% in myoglobin & 23% as ferritin in spleen,liver and bone marrow.
 Pathway of iron(III) from the foodstuf to hemoglobin and to ferritin:
(i) The Fe2+ of the bound dietary material is reduced to Fe2+ in the gastrointestinal tract.
(ii) After absorption into the cells , Fe2+ is incorporated into ferritin as Fe3+.
(iii) The Fe2+ is also converted to Fe3+ plasma bounded by transferrin.
(iv) Plasma Fe3+ is in the equilibrium with iron in the liver,spleen and bone marrow.

10. Zinc-An essential trace element
 Zinc is essential to all orgamisms and plays an important biological role in the enzyme systems of animals and
plants.
 Human contain about 2 g of zinc and is one of the most important and crucial elements in our diet.
 Zn2+ ion is a soft-acceptor compared to other divalent ions like Mg2+, Ca2+ or Mn2+ and act as stronger
lewis acid towards many biomolecules.
 The complexes of Zn2+ are much liable which facilitates the role of zinc in enzymes. Since Zn2+ ion is
completely resistant to redkx changes at biological potentials, its role can’t be effected by changing redox
potentials in the organism.
 The most important zinc containing enzyme is the carbonic anhydrase. It is present in red blood cells and
involved in the respiration. It speeds up the absorption of CO2 by red blood cells in muscles and also imvolves
release of CO2 in the lungs.
 The water molecule coordinated to a zinc in enzyme that has pH near 7. The role of zinc is to reduce the
basicity f hydroxide ion.
 Another important enzyme containing zinc ion is carboxy peptidase. It is present in the pancreatic juice and is
primarily involved in the digestion of protein by animals and protein metabolism in plants and animals.

11. Some other important essential elements.
 Copper: Human being need around 8 mg of copper daily. The copper is bound to proteins in the body either as
metalloproteins or as enzymes. The illnesscaused by the excess of copper is called WILSON’S DISEASE. Haemocyanin is a copper
containing protein which is important as an oxygen carrier in some invertebrate animals.
 Selenium: In humans and other mammals, sercous diseases arise from either excessive or insufficient dietary selenium. The
accepteddaily requirement of selenium for adult humans is 70 micrograms.Many type of food provide selenium,particulary sea
food,meats,grains and the onion family.
 Nickel:It is present in enzymes systems in the form of porphyrin type complexes. It is highly toxic to most plants and
moderately toxic to animals.
 Cadmium: It is toxic element present in food stuffs. Kidney is the most susceptible to cadmium. Cadmium ingested
200 ppm cause severe damage. Cigarette smokers absorbs significant levels of cadmium from tobacco.
 Mercury: It is hazardous because of high vapour pressure. The mercury vapour is absorbed in the
lungs,dissolves in the blood and is then carried to the brain. This cause irreversible damage to the central nervous
system. Inorganic compound of mercury are less toxic as they have less solubility in water.

12. Chromium and
Molybdenum
Trace elements of chromium and
molydenum are necessary in the diet of
mammals. Chromium and insulin are both
involved in maintaining the correct level of
glucose in the blood. A deficiency of Cr(III)
or an ability or an inability to use the Cr3+
ion results in the removal of glucose from
the blood fast and lead to diabetes.
Molybdates ion has a high aqueous
solubility at near-neutral pH values making
it easily transportable by biological fluids. It
has a wide range of oxidation state (+4,
+5, +6) whose redox potentials overlap
with those of biological systems.
Phosphorus and
Iodine
Phosphorous constitutes an important part
of a energy rich molecule known as ATP
(adensonine tri phosphate).It is also
important component of bone as apatite
(calcium hydroxide phosphate.
Iodine present in the human body is
located at one place i.e. the thyroid gland.
It is used in the synthesis of harmones
thyroxine and triiodide thyronine.
The harmones are essential for growth for
regulation of neuromuscular functioning
and for the maintenance of male and
female reproductive functions. Our
common cause of goitre is lack of iodine in
the diet.
Chloride
The chloride has a vital role in the
ion balance in our bodies. It is a
major anion found inside and
outside the cell
It is essential as NaCl electrolyte for
higher mammals and plants.
Chloride ion is essential in digestive
juices. Deficiency of chloride ion in
infants leads to imapired growth.

13. Thank YOU