Carbohydrates Flashcards
Carbohydrate and oxidisation
Highly oxidizable: sugar –> starch molecules have “high energy” H atom-associated electrons
This makes them a major energy source with carb catabolism being a major metabolic process for most organisms
What are carbs functions
- To store potential energy:
-starch (plants)
-Glycogen (animals) - Structural/protective sunction in ECM
- Contribut to cell-cell communication (ABO blood groups)
3 monosaccharides
hexoses 6-C sugars: Glucose, Galactose, Fructose
What are disaccharides
Formed from monomers linked by glycosidic bonds - covalent bond formed when OH group of one monosac reacts with anomeric carbon of other monosac
What is an anomeric carbon
- Diff anomers = mirror images of each other (L/R)
- C1 on glucose residue
- stabilises structure of glucose
- only residue that can be oxidised
3 disaccharides
- Maltose
- Lactose
- Sucrose
Briefly explain maltose
- Mostly break-down product of starch (not much from diet)
- Anomeric C-1 is availabe for oxidation so maltose can be oxidised (termed a reducing sugar)
Briefly explain lactose
- Main sugar in milk
- Formed fromglycosidic bond between galactose and glucose
- Anomeric C on the glucose available for oxidation (so it is termed reducing sugar)
briefly explain sucrose
- “table” sugar
- Does not have a free anomeric C-1 so there is no oxidation site, hence it is a non-reducing sugar
What are polysaccharides
Polymers of med-high molecular weight, and can be distinguished from each other in the:
* identity of recurring monosaccharide units
* length of their chains
* types of bonds linking monosaccharide units
* amount of branching they exhibit
What can polysaccharides be?
- Homopolysaccharides - single monomeric species
- Heteropolysaccharides - two or more monomer species
what is starch
2 typers of glucose polymer:
1. Amylose - D-glucose seridues in (a1->4) linkage and can hae thousands of glucose residues
2. Amylopectin - similar but branched. Glycosidic (a1->4) bonds join glucose in the chains but branches are (a1->6) and occur every 24 - 30 residues
what does starch have many of
Non-reducing ends (and few reducing ends)
Glycogen
Polymer of glucose (a1->4) linked sub-units with (a1-6) branches every 8 to 12 residues - makes it more extensively branched than starch - more dense and can pack more in
Where is glycogen found
90% in liver (replenishes blood glucose when fasting) and skeletal muscles (catabolism produces ATP for contraction)
Why do we store glucose as a polymer (glycogen)
- Compactness
- Amylopectin and glycogen have many non-reducing ends mening they can be readily synthesised and degraded to and from monomers
- Polymers form hydrated gels and not “in solution”, making them osmotically inactive so doesn’t move out of cells etc
Glycoproteins
P with carbs covalently attached - most extracellular eukaryotic P have associated carboihydrate molecules
Glycoprotiens - what do carbs attached to proteins do
- Inc P solubility
- Inc P folding and conformation
- Protect it from degredation
- Act as communication between cells
Glycosamionglycans (GAG)
Un-branced polymers made from repeating units of hexuronicacid and an amino-sugar, which alternate through the chains
Function of GAG’s
in mucus and also synovial fluid around joints
Proteoglycans
GAGs covalently attching to Proteins. Are macromolecules found on the surface of cells/in ECM and part of many CT in body
What are proteoglycans similar to
Glycoproteins
Where are glycoproteins usually found
Outer plasma membrane and ECM - also in blood and within cells in secretory system
What does the disordered nature of glycoproteins mean they do?
stick
What is Mucopolysaccharidoses
group of genetic disorders caused by abence or malfunction of enzymes that are required for the breakdown of GAG. GAG build up. Damages cellular architecture/function. Causes dementia, heart problems, stunted bones, inflamed joints…
Examples of mucopolysaccharidoses
Hurler, scheie, hunter, sanfilippo syndromes
Where are carbs digested?
- Mouth - salivary amylase hydrolyses (a1->4) bonds of starch
- Stomach - no carb digestion
- Duodenum - pancreatic amylase works as in mouth
- Jejunum (small inntestine) - final digestion by mucosal cell-surface enzymes:
* Isomaltase - hydrolyses a1->6 bonds
* Glucoamylase - removes GLC sequentially from non-reducing ends
* Suucrase - hydrolyses sucrose
* Lactase - hydrolyses lactose
What are the main products of carb digestion
Glc, Gal, Fru
Briefly describe the absorption of glucose
sodium-glucose symporter pumps glucose into epithelial cells from the intestine against its conc grad. Glucose uniporter GLUT2 facilitates the efflux of glucose into the bloodstream
How is the absorption of galactose similar to that of glucose
Utilises gradients to facilitate its transport