carbohydrates Flashcards
what is a carbohydrate?
a substance containing hydrogen, carbon and oxygen which is made up of sugar monomers
what is a monosaccharide?
a single molecule carbohydrate sugar
what is a disaccharide?
a double molecule carbohydrate sugar
what is a polysaccharide?
a large carbohydrate made out of many sugar monomers
what is a hexose sugar?
a sugar with six carbons in the shape of a hexagon
what is a pentose sugar?
a sugar with five carbons in the shape of a pentagon
what is an isomer?
a molecule with the same molecular formula, but the atoms arranged in a different way (eg, alpha and beta glucose)
what distinguishes alpha glucose?
the hydrogen is above the hydroxide on the first carbon
what distinguishes beta glucose?
the hydroxide is above the hydrogen on the first carbon
what is a condensation reaction?
a reaction that produces water as a product
what is a hydrolysis reaction?
a reaction that uses water as a reactant
what is a glycosidic bond?
the bond formed between glucose molecules, alpha or beta, (1-4) or (1-6)
what monomers make up maltose?
two alpha glucose molecules
what monomers are in sucrose?
one glucose and one fructose molecule
what monomers are in lactose?
one glucose and one galactose molecule
what does benedict’s reagent do?
turns brick red when heated with reducing sugars
what is a reducing sugar?
a sugar that can donate an electron to a another chemical
what is a non-reducing sugar?
a sugar which can’t donate electrons without being hydrolised into its monomers first
what is starch?
a polysaccharide made of alpha glucose monomers bonded with 1-4 and 1-6 glycosidic bonds
what is amylopectin?
a type of starch which makes up around 75%, both 1-4 and 1-6 bonds with branches
what is amylose?
a type of starch which makes up 25%, with only 1-4 bonds in a helical structure
what is a plastid?
an intracellular storage organelle for starch (amylopectin)
what is an amyloplast?
a type of plastid
what is cellulose?
a polysaccharide made of beta glucose with 1-4 glycosidic bonds
