CHEMISTRY| ORGANIC CHEMISTRY

 What is Organic Chemistry ?

Organic chemistry is the branch of  Chemistry that deals with the study of structure, composition, chemical reactions, and other physical and chemical properties of hydrocarbons and their derivatives. 

What are hydrocarbons and their derivatives? 

Hydrocarbons are the compounds of purely carbon and hydrogen e.g alkanes, alkenes, alkynes and aromatic compounds like benzene, napthalene, anthracene and many others. Not the atom of any other element is present in them. If any other atom is attached with these hydrocarbons, then these compounds are called as the derivatives of hydrocarbons. They may contain elements like Oxygen, Nitrogen, Halogens, Sulphur, Phosphorus, and some metals like magnesium, potassium, copper,iron etc. For example alcohols(R-OH), Amines (R-NH2), Alkyl halides (R-X), Carboxylic acids(R-COOH), Phenols, substituted aryls, Nitro benzene, Grignard reagents(R-Mg-X)and  many others. These compounds are called as derivatives because they are formed by the substitution of a group in a hydrocarbons. 

What are the classes of organic compounds? 

Organic compounds are divided into different classes on the basis of the functional group attached to the hydrocarbons. There are too many classes of organic compounds, a few of them are listed below. 

Some common classes of organic compounds with general structures and class name.

How do we study organic compounds? 

About 900 million organic compounds exists in the today's world and they are increasing  exponentially. These compounds may be naturally occurring or synthesized artificially in the laboratory for commercial purposes. As, it would be quite impossible to study these organic compounds individually. So, to simplify the study of organic compounds, these are classified or divided into homologous series. 

What are homologous series? 

Homologous series is a series of organic compounds having same general formula (the length of carbon chain increases but have the same functional group), chemical properties , show similar chemical reactions and have comparable methods of preparation. The successive members of the homologous series vary from each other by a CH2  group. The members of homologous series differ from each other because of their chain length. 

For example, the hydrocarbons having OH- group attached to the carbon atom, form a homologous series of compounds called as Alkanols (alcohols). The chemical formula and chain length of the adjacent members of this series differ from each other by -CH2 (methyl group). 

GARLIC | BENEFITS OF GARLIC | NUTRIENTS IN GARLIC | ALLICIN | ALLIIN

 GARLIC

Scientific name: Allium sativum

(The name Allium sativum is derived from the two words , i.e “all" a Celtic word means  “burning or stinging “ and the “sativum" a Latin word means planted or cultivated. 

TAXONOMIC HIERARCHY OF ALLIUM SATIVUM 

                 Kingdom: Plantae 

                   Sub kingdom: Viridiplantae 

                     Infra kingdom: Streptophyta

                       Super division: Embryophyta

                         Division: Tracheophyta

                           Sub division: Spermatophytina

                             Class: Magnoliopsida 

                               Super order: Lilianae 

                                 Order: Asparagales

                                   Family: Amaryllidaceae

                                     Genus: Allium 

                                       Species: Allium sativum

Garlic (also known as a Russian penicillin: as it is anti bacterial agent), is a bulb of plant Allium sativum and belongs to Lilianceae. Garlic bulb consists of many individual cloves in a thin white layer and sometimes in purple coloured skin.

Garlic is used in almost every cuisine around the world. Garlic has a pungent smell to some extent because of sulfur compounds present in it. It adds a very good flavour to our meal and has many positive effects on human health. 

Garlic has many medicinal uses and is very beneficial to humans. From centuries, more than 3000 years ago, it is used in raw or cooked formed in Egypt, China, India, Greece and in many other territories around the world to cure and prevent many diseases.

Garlic is beneficial to humans in many ways: 

• Garlic is used as infection warrior. 

• Garlic is used to scavenge free radicals to inhibit the aging process. 

• Garlic has antibacterial, antiviral and antifungal properties. So it helps our body to combat different type of diseases. In short, garlic has many immune boosting properties and this is mainly because of a sulfur containing compound called as Alliin (which metabolized to allicin).

• Garlic is used to treat many upper respiratory tract infestations, such as chronic bronchitis, influenza and even helpful to combat COVID-19.

• Garlic is rich in antioxidants, so it helps to lower blood cholesterol level. But it doesn’t interact with LDL (low density lipoprotein). Hence, the concentration of LDL remains unaffected. 

• Garlic slows down the hardening of arteries. 

• Garlic lowers the blood pressure and makes it thin by lowering the concentration of fibrin and platelets in blood.

• Garlic is the best diet to cure common cold and flu.

• Garlic is used to prevent breast, stomach, colorectal and prostate cancer.

[ HOW DO GARLIC EFFECTS VARIOUS PHENOMENAS IN HUMAN BODY / HOW DO GARLIC HELPS TO CURE DIFFERENT DISEASES AND IMPROVE MANY OF REGULAR METABOLIC PROCESSES IN HIMANS ]

• Garlic has abundance of nutrients which are essential to humans in many ways:

1. Garlic contains large amount of minerals, which include germanium, selenium, magnesium, calcium, copper, iron, potassium, zinc and tellerium. 
2. Garlic contains many vitamins, which include Vitamin A, Vitamin B1, Vitamin B2, Vitamin B3, and Vitamin C.
3. Garlic contains many sugars including fructose, glucose, and galactose. 
4. Garlic contains 17 amnio acids which are essential to living body. These amnio acids include lysine, histidine, arginine, aspartic acid, threonine, glutamine, proline, glycine, alanine, cysteine, valine, methionine, isoleucine, tryptophan and phenylalanine. 
5. Garlic is packed with 33 sulfur compounds which are higher in concentration than any of the Allium specie.   These compounds include alliin, ajoene, DADS, DATS, SAC, DAS ,saponins and many others.

• Biological effects of garlic are characteristic are assigned to its organosulfur compounds. A compound called as Allicin, discovered by Cavallito and Bailey in 1944 is responsible for many characteristics of garlic including its pungent smell. Allicin (Diallyl thiosulfate) chemically known as 2-propene-1-sulfinothioc acid S-2-propenyl ester.

Allicin doesn’t exist in garlic until it is crushed or got injured. When a garlic bulb or clove got an injury an enzyme ALLINASE activates in the garlic which metabolize alliin (a amnio acid based on cysteine present in garlic) into allicin.

ALLIIN

                  

 ALLICIN 

Allicin further metabolizes into compounds like DAS, DADS, DATS, methyl trisulfide, ajoene and many other compounds rapidly on heating and in few hours at room temperature. Allicin can diffuse easily into lumen of blood vessels or into the cytoplasm of cells including RBC's.

• Garlic is the healthiest component of our meal to prevent cancer. There are many compounds found in garlic which are anti-cancerous. These anti-cancer compounds are divided into two categories. One category includes lipid soluble compounds like diallyl sulfide (DADS), diallyl trisulfide (DATS) and the other category includes water soluble compounds like glutamate (S-allyl cysteine). In garlic, these compounds can prevent cancer in many ways i.e by inhabiting / preventing mutagenesis, cell proliferation, DNA adduct formation, tumor enlargement and  by stopping  different enzyme activities. 

The AGE garlic (sliced or raw garlic stored in 15% ethanol for about 18 months) is the most suitable form of garlic to prevent different forms of cancer. This AGE garlic acts in different ways to block prostate cancer growth. S-allyl mercaptocysteine (in garlic) stops the growth of breast cancer cells. It helps in eradication of erythroleukemia and colorectal cancer. Mercaptocysteine helps to stop these types of cancer by disrupting cell division which cause apoptosis. 

• Researches have proved the vasoactive ability of garlic, because of its sulfur compounds, mainly allicin. Allicin is the major bioactive substance which lowers blood pressure upto 16mmHg in a few hours. 
•  High level of platelets and fibrin in blood causes it to thickens and become a major reason of various cardiovascular problems and heart attack. 

A sulfur containing compound called as Ajoene reduces the concentration of fibrin in blood ( by decreasing their formation and damaging the existing one in blood ). As, ajoene is the product formed by metabolism of allicin, so it doesn't exist in raw garlic. 

• Garlic is also regarded as the best immune booster. It increases the immune response by increasing macrophages activity, because of its many sulfur containing amino acids. Germanium is also a companion of amino acids in boosting immune response. 
• Garlic has also positive effects in lowering blood cholesterol level. It shows high resistance to the formation of HDL but is less efficient in suppressing the formation and concentration of LDL. 
• Garlic also helps our body i.e stomach, esophagus, colon,mammary glands and lungs in protection against carcinogens. This is because of the presence of organosulfur compounds, and predominantly allyl derivatives which detoxifies the effect of carcinogens.
• Garlic has been proven very helpful in the treatment of diabetes mellitus, as it lowers the blood glucose level. 
• Garlic is the best preventive measure against fungal infections. The best anti-fungal agent found in garlic is Ajoene. A review on a report from Chinese medical journal delineates shows the use of intravenous garlic to treat a potentially fatal and rare fungal infection of the brain called as Cryptococcus meningitis. Here, the effectiveness of garlic was compared with a very toxic antibiotic called as Amphotericin and seen that intravenous garlic was more effective than the drug and seems to be non- toxic. 
• Garlic (aged garlic) acts as anti-oxidant because it increases the serum level of antioxidants enzymes such as catalase and glutathione peroxide. Allicin is the most active component in scavenging free radicals and act as antioxidant. Because of its antioxidant effect it slows the process of aging.