Javier, Mae Angellene C.

February 9, 2017
BSChe 3 830-930 TTHS

Monosaccharides
Chemical Structure:
Monosaccharides are also called "simple sugars".
Monosaccharides are the common base unit of all carbohydrate molecules.
Remember: "Mono" "One (1)"
Characteristics:
Soluble in water
Sweetness varies (with individual monosaccharide)
3 Common Monosaccharides:
1. Fructose("Fruit Sugar")

Also known as fruit sugar

A ketonic monosaccharide found in many plants.
Main sources are many kinds of fruits, as well as
honey.

2. Glucose
Also known as blood sugar
It is very important in animal including human physiology,
diet and nutrition because glucose is the form of sugar that is
used by the body for energy.
All other carbohydrates, including all other sugars,
are converted into glucose within the digestive system (digestive
processes)
Present in various forms of vegetation including many ripe
fruits as well as onions and beetroot.
3. Galactose

A monosaccharide sugar that is

less sweet than glucose and fructose. It is a C-4 epimer of glucose.
Present in mammals' milk
Disaccharides
Chemical Structure:
Disaccharides consist of (exactly) TWO (2) monosaccharaides joined together.
Remember: "Di" "Two (2)"
Characteristics:
Soluble in water
Must be broken-down into monosaccharide before they can be absorbed into the
body
3 Common Disaccharides:
1. Sucrose

Chemically, Sucrose (molecule) = Glucose

(molecule) + Fructose (molecule)
Common form of sugar obtained from sugar cane or
sugar beet
Also present in some fruits and vegetables

2. Lactose

Chemically, Lactose (molecule) = Glucose

(molecule) + Galactose (molecule)
Present in mammals' milk, hence associated with
dairy products
Provides mammalian infants with a source of
energy
Also known as milk sugar

3. Maltose

A disaccharide formed from two units of glucose joined

with an (14)bond, formed from a condensation reaction.
Chemically, ONE Maltose molecule consists of TWO
Glucose molecules attached together
Present in cereals e.g. barley
Also known as "Malt Sugar"
Polysaccharides
Chemical Structure:
Polysaccharides consist of polymers of chains (in some cases very long chains) of
monosaccharide or disaccharide units all joined together.
Remember: "Poly" "Many"
Characteristics:
Tasteless
Insoluble in cold water
5 Main Groups of Polysaccharides:
1. Starch

A polymeric carbohydrate consisting of a

large number of glucose units joined by glycosidic
bonds. This polysaccharide is produced by most
green plants as an energy store.
Formed by plants during photosynthesis.
Present in many plant-based food sources,
such as root vegetables. e.g. potatoes, cereals e.g.
and pulses.

2. Cellulose

Cellulose is a straight chain polymer: unlike starch, no

coiling or branching occurs, and the molecule adopts an
extended and rather stiff rod-like conformation, aided by the
equatorial conformation of the glucose residues.
A polysaccharide consisting of a linear chain of several
hundred to many thousands of (14) linked D-glucose units.
Forms the structure of some plants
Indigestible by humans but digestible by some other
animals.
Valuable in human diet as source of dietary fiber - which used to be known as
"roughage"
3. Glycogen

Glycogen is a multi-branched polysaccharide of glucose

consisting of linear chains of glucose residues with further chains
branching off of 8 to 12 glucose or so. Glucoses are linked
together linearly by (14) glycosidic bonds from one glucose
to the next. Branches are linked to the chains from which they
are branching off by (16) glycosidic bonds between the first
glucose of the new branch and a glucose on the stem chain.
The stored form of glucose (glucose is a monosaccharide -
see above) present in animals including humans.
Energy store within the body, stored within muscles and
the liver and brain