Structure of monosaccharides

Question 1

What is the range of carbon lengths for monosaccharides?

Answer 1

Three (triose) to seven (heptose) carbons.

Question 2

What type of sugar is formed from two monosaccharides?

Answer 2

Disaccharide.

Question 3

What are the two types of carbonyl groups in sugars?

Answer 3

Aldehyde (primary position) in aldoses and ketone (secondary position) in ketoses.

Question 4

How many chiral carbons do hexose sugars have?

Answer 4

Four chiral carbons.

Question 5

What differentiates enantiomers from diastereomers in sugars?

Answer 5

Enantiomers are mirror images (e.g., D-glucose and L-glucose), while diastereomers have different arrangements of their stereogenic centers (e.g., D-galactose vs. D-glucose).

Question 6

What are the key factors that control monosaccharide biosynthesis?

Answer 6

1) Carbon length, 2) Carbonyl position, 3) Stereogenic placement of alcohols on chiral carbons.

Question 7

Why is the ability of sugars to form cyclic structures important in digestion?

Answer 7

Enzymes in the digestive tract primarily hydrolyze alpha (α) linked sugars.

Question 8

What is the significance of the reducing ability of anomers?

Answer 8

It can be conferred to disaccharides and polysaccharides, impacting their reactivity.