Carbohydrates

© 2010 Pearson Education, Inc.

Can you live without sugar?
 Soda
 Cookies
 Candy
 Chocolate
 Desserts
 Sugary
Cereals
 Ice cream

© 2010 Pearson Education, Inc.

What are Carbohydrates?

 An organic compound that is the body’s main source of

energy.
 Defined as polyhydroxyaldehydes or polyhydroxy-
ketones, or compounds that can be hydrolyzed to
them. (aka sugars or saccharides)
 Compose of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen
 Empirical formula: (CH2O)n

© 2010 Pearson Education, Inc.

How are Carbohydrates form…
Using the sun’s energy and the green pigment in plants called
chlorophyll, plants convert carbon dioxide and water into glucose
and oxygen. Glucose is the basic sugar molecule from which all
carbohydrates (sugars, starches, and fiber) are made.

© 2010 Pearson Education, Inc.

Carbohydrates…
 In plants, energy from the sun is used to convert carbon
dioxide and water into carbohydrate glucose.
 Many of the glucose molecules are made into long-chain
polymers of starch that store energy.
 About 65% of the foods in our diet consist of
carbohydrates.
 Each day we utilize carbohydrates in foods
 Other carbohydrates called disaccharides include sucrose
and lactose
 During digestion and cellular metabolism , carbohydrates
are converted into glucose.
 Which is oxidized further in our cells to provide our bodies
with energy and to provide the cells with carbon atoms for
building molecules of protein, lipids, and nucleic acids
 In plants, a polymer of glucose called cellulose builds the
structural framework.
© 2010 Pearson Education, Inc.
Functions of Carbohydrates
 sources of energy
 intermediates in the biosynthesis of other
basic biochemical entities (fats and
proteins)
 associated with other entities such as
glycosides, vitamins and antibiotics)
 form structural tissues in plants and in
microorganisms (cellulose)
 participate in biological transport, cell-cell
recognition, activation of growth factors,
modulation of the immune system
© 2010 Pearson Education, Inc.
How does Carbohydrates look like?

glucose
C6H12O6

sucrose
starch
© 2010 Pearson Education, Inc.
Classification of Carbohydrates
 Classified according to the number of
subunits that make them up

3 types of Carbohydrates
 Monosaccharides
 Oligosaccharides
 Polysaccharides

© 2010 Pearson Education, Inc.

Types of Carbohydrates
Monosaccahrides are simple sugars,
or the compounds posses a free aldehyde (CHO), or
ketone group and two or more hydroxyl groups and
cannot be hydrolyzed into smaller units. It contains a
single carbon chain and classified on the basis of
number of carbon atoms they posses.
Ex. Glucose, Galactose and, Fructose

© 2010 Pearson Education, Inc.

 Monosaccahrides
Glucose - Blood glucose and blood sugar in the body
- Most abundant monosaccharide in the body
- Part of every disaccharide
Galactose
- Commonly occurs as part of disaccharide
lactose
Fructose
- Sweetest of natural sugars
- Found abundantly in fruits

© 2010 Pearson Education, Inc.

Types of Carbohydrates

Oligosaccahrides
are compound
sugars that yield 2 to 10 molecules of the same or
different monosaccharides.

Disaccharides
- composed of 2 monosaccharides
- cells can make disaccharides by joining
two monosaccharides by biosynthesis

© 2010 Pearson Education, Inc.

 Disaccharides
Sucrose (Glucose + Fructose)
-table sugar

Lactose (Glucose + Galactose)

-milk sugar

Maltose (Glucose + Glucose)

-produced when starch breaks down

© 2010 Pearson Education, Inc.

 Oligosaccharides

Trisaccharides – composed of three monosaccharide

Ex. Raffinose (Glu, Fruc, Galac)

Tetrasaccharides – composed of three monosaccharide

Ex. Stachyose (2 Galac, Glu, Fruc)

© 2010 Pearson Education, Inc.

Types of Carbohydrates

Polysaccahrides containing 10 or
more monosaccharide units attached together.

-A condensation reaction occurs between each MU

and are held together with glycosidic bonds
-Molecules can be branched or unbranched
-Are insoluble and not sweet to taste
-Storage polysacs are folded to give compact molecules
-Structural polysacs are coiled or straight chained

© 2010 Pearson Education, Inc.

 Polysaccahrides
Starch
- the storage form of carbohydrate in plants
- the major digestible polysaccharide in our diet
- Two types of plant starch:
1. Amylose
2. Amylopectin

© 2010 Pearson Education, Inc.

Starch have two structures…
Starch molecules known as
‘amylopectin’ have branches,
like veins in a leaf. The cereal
starches such as wheat, corn,
and rice are in amylopectin
form.
© 2010 Pearson Education, Inc.
Starch molecules known as
‘amylose’ are linear, taking a long
and narrow form like a line. Root
starches are in the amylose form.
Examples are potatoes or cassava
root (the source of tapioca).
Cassava root
 Sources
Pasta
Cornmeal

Wheat ,rye, barley

Potatoes
Beets, corn,
parsnips,
peas, acorn
squash

Oatmeal; cereals
Rice
© 2010 Pearson Education, Inc.
 Polysaccahrides
Glycogen
- the storage form of
glucose in the body
- stored in the liver and
muscle
- not found in plants
- serves as buffer to
maintain blood glucose level

© 2010 Pearson Education, Inc.

 Polysaccahrides
Cellulose
- form cell walls in plant cell
- also called fiber or ruffage
- indigestible by humans

© 2010 Pearson Education, Inc.

 Structure of Cellulose
Molecular Structure
- unbranched chain polymer
- high molecular composition
Crystal Structure
- can crystallize into different polymorphic forms
Fibrillar Structure
- individual cellulose molecules are linked
together to form a fibril

© 2010 Pearson Education, Inc.

 Uses of Cellulose
• Cotton: composed of 80-90% with the cotton fibers
containing polymer chains
• Pharmaceuticals: Medicines are derived from plants
cellulose, cellulose acetate etc.
• Cellophane: can be obtained when viscous cellulose
reacts with acid
• Bomb: cellulose trinitrate is used as a propellant for
bullets due to fact that nitrate group can be explosive
• Energy drinks: Glucuronolacton, vitamins,
carbohydrate
• Industrial sugar, biofuel production, using oil
production, ester production
© 2010 Pearson Education, Inc.
© 2010 Pearson Education, Inc.
© 2010 Pearson Education, Inc.
© 2010 Pearson Education, Inc.
© 2010 Pearson Education, Inc.