198 BIOCHEMICALLY IMPORTANT MINERAL ELEMENTS 



REVIEW QUESTIONS ON MINERAL ELEMENTS 



1. Give the names and sources of two organic forms of (1) phosphorus, (2) cal- 

 cium, (3) sulfur; one organic and one inorganic form of (4) magnesium, (5) iron, 

 (6) iodine, (7) copper, (8) zinc, (9) cobalt. 



2. Discuss the mineral element calcium with reference to (1) its function in the 

 body, (2) the daily requirement of the body, (3) its distribution in food materials. 

 Repeat the above discussion for phosphorus and iron. 



3. Discuss the relative availability to the body of organic and inorganic forms of 

 the mineral elements important in nutrition. 



4. Name five important trace mineral elements. Are any of these essential to the 

 body? If so, in what way do they serve it? 



5. Calculate the acid-base balance between 0.210 gram Ca and 0.168 gram S. 

 Ca = 40, S = 32. 



6. About how much copper and manganese are contained in the food eaten daily 

 by an adult on an average diet? Name three foods rich in copper; three rich in 

 manganese. 



7. How much calcium is contained in a quart of milk; a one-pound- loaf of bread; 

 a five-pound head of cabbage? 



8. How much calcium may be lost if the water in which vegetables are boiled is 

 discarded? Name some practical means by which the mineral elements extracted 

 in the cooking of vegetables may be conserved and utilized. 



9. Which are the main types of chemical change that occur during ashing? 



10. Of what does the ash from biological material consist? List five typical sub- 

 stances that you would expect to be present in wood ashes. 



11. How could the loss of sulfur or chlorine during ashing be prevented? 



12. List all the elements now thought to be essential for the normal nutrition of 

 higher animals; of higher plants. 



13. Which of the nutritionally important mineral elements are associated with the 

 action of certain enzymes? List the enzymes concerned. 



14. Discuss the effect of abnormal concentrations of specific mineral elements in 

 the soil of certain areas on the animals and people living in those areas. 



REFERENCES AND SUGGESTED READINGS 



Amon, D. I. and Stout, P. R., "Molybdenum as an Essential Element for Higher 



Plants," Plant Physiology, 14, 599 (1939). 

 Berger, K. C, "Boron in Soils and Crops," Advances in Agroiiomy, 1, 321 (1949). 

 Elvehjem, C. A., "The Biological Significance of Copper and Its Relation to Iron 



Metabolism," Physiol. Rev., 15, 471 (1935). 

 Food and Nutrition Board, "Recommended Daily Dietary Allowances, Revised 



1948," Nutrition Reviews, 6, 319 (1948). 

 Hambidge, G., Hunger Signs in Crops, 2nd ed., American Society of Agronomy, 



Washington, D. C, 1949. 

 Hart, E. B. and Elvehjem, C. A., "Mineral Metabolism," Ann. Rev. Biochem., 5, 



271 (1936). 

 Hawk, P. B., Oser, B. L., and Summerson, W. H., Practical Physiological Chemistry, 



12th ed., The Blakiston Company, Philadelphia, 1949, p. 1002. 

 Heilbrunn, L. V., An Outline of General Physiology, 2nd ed., W. B. Saunders Com- 

 pany, New York, 1943. 



