Biochemistry is a scientific discipline that combines biological and chemical concepts and methods. It is focused on the understanding of molecules that are relevant to biological processes. These can be small molecules that form part of metabolic pathways, chemical compounds that bind to biological molecules and macromolecules such as DNA, RNA and proteins. Biochemistry as a discipline investigates the structure and function of these molecules either in isolation or in a cellular context. Biochemists generate and modify molecules to understand their function and design molecules with novel properties.