Carbohydrates

Carbohydrates
Carbohydrates
Biochemistry
• Biochemistry: The science concerned with the chemical
constituents of living cells and with the reactions and processes
they undergo. The principal kinds of biomolecules are:
carbohydrates, proteins, lipids, nucleic acid, hormones, and
vitamins.
Carbohydrates
• Carbohydrates: molecules consisting of carbon, hydrogen,
and oxygen their formula is (CH2O)n. They make up most of
the organic matter on earth because of their multiple roles in
all forms of life.
• Carbohydrates include not only sugar, but also the starches
that we find in foods, such as bread, pasta, and rice.
• The term ―carbohydrate - comes from the observation that

when you heat sugars, you get carbon and water (hence,
hydrate of carbon).
compounds of biological importance:
Carbohydrates–
1-They provide energy through oxidation
2–They supply carbon for the synthesis of cell components
3–They serve as a form of stored chemical energy
4–They form part of the structures of some cells and tissues
BIOMEDICAL IMPORTANCE
•Carbohydrates are widely distributed in plants and animals;
they have important structural and metabolic roles. In plants,
glucose is synthesized from carbon dioxide and water by
photosynthesis and stored as starch or used to synthesize
cellulose of the plant framework.
Classification of Carbohydrates
Carbohydrates can be classified in to four types:
1-Monosaccharide: a carbohydrate that cannot be hydrolyzed to

simpler compounds.
2-Disaccharides: a carbohydrate that can be hydrolyzed to two
monosaccharide molecules.
3-Oligosaccharides: are condensation products of Three to

ten monosaccharides
4-Polysaccharide: a carbohydrate that can be hydrolyzed to
many monosaccharaides molecules.
(1) Monosaccharides
Are those carbohydrates that cannot hydrolyzed into simpler
carbohydrates. They may be classified as trioses, tetroses,
pentoses, hexoses, or heptoses, depending upon the number of
carbon atoms; and as aldoses or ketoses depending upon whether
they have an aldehyde or ketone group. Examples are listed in the
following Table.
Classification of important sugars

Aldoses Ketoses
Trioses (C3H6O3) Glycerose Dihydroxyacetone
Tetroses (C4H8O4) Erythrose Erythrulose
Pentoses (C5H10O5) Ribose Ribulose
Hexoses (C6H12O6) Glucose Fructose
• An aldohexose: is a six – carbon monosaccharide containing an
aldehyde group.
• Ketopentose: is a five – carbon monosaccharide containing an
keto group
• Glucose is the most important carbohydrate; most dietary

carbohydrate is absorbed into the blood stream as glucose, and other
sugars are converted into glucose in the liver. Glucose is the major
metabolic fuel of mammals (except ruminants) and a universal fuel of
the fetus. It is the precursor for synthesis of all the other
carbohydrates in the body, including glycogen for storage; ribose and
deoxyribose in nucleic acids; and galactose in lactose of milk, in
glycolipids, and in combination with protein in glycoproteins and
proteoglycans
Sources:
• In the leaf of a plant, the simple compounds carbon dioxide and
water are combined to form the sugar (glucose). This process,
known as photosynthesis, requires catalysis by the green coloring
matter chlorophyll, and required energy in the form of light.
Thousands of glucose molecules can then be combined to form the
much larger molecules of cellulose.
Glucose molecules can be also combined, in some different way,

to form the large molecules of starch, which is then stored in the
seeds to serve as food for a new, growing plant.
The Structure of Glucose
Can Be Represented in Three
Ways
1-The straight-chain structural

formula (aldohexose)
2-The structural formula is represented as a simple ring as

proposed by Haworth.
3-The six-membered ring containing one oxygen atom is in the
form of a chair.
D- Glucose
A: straight chain form B: Haworth projection C: chair form

• Fischer projections are a convenient way to represent mirror
images in two dimensions.
• Place the carbonyl group at or near the top and the last achiral
CH2OH at the bottom.
Monosaccharaides
Aldoses (e.g., glucose) have Ketoses (e.g., fructose) a keto
aldehyde group at C1. group, usually at C2.
Examples of monosaccharaides
● glucose, galactose, ribose, fructose.
L and D monosaccharaides
Enantiomers are a pair of molecules that exist in two forms that are
mirror images of one another .
• D-Dextro, OH group before the terminal carbon to the right
• L-Levo OH group before the terminal carbon to the left
Physical Properties of Monosaccharides
•Most monosaccharides have a sweet taste
•They are solids at room temperature, colorless and crystalline
compounds
•They are extremely soluble in water.

Carbohydrates

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Carbohydrates

• The term ―carbohydrate - comes from the observation that

Carbohydrates can be classified in to four types:

1-Monosaccharide: a carbohydrate that cannot be hydrolyzed to

3-Oligosaccharides: are condensation products of Three to

Classification of important sugars

• Glucose is the most important carbohydrate; most dietary

Glucose molecules can be also combined, in some different way,

1-The straight-chain structural

2-The structural formula is represented as a simple ring as

A: straight chain form B: Haworth projection C: chair form

● glucose, galactose, ribose, fructose.

Physical Properties of Monosaccharides

•Most monosaccharides have a sweet taste

•They are solids at room temperature, colorless and crystalline

•They are extremely soluble in water.

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