BLG 143 Lecture Notes - Lecture 5: Starch, Aldehyde, Oligosaccharide

• School: Ryerson University
• Department: Biology
• Course: BLG 143
• Professor: Vadim Bostan

Document Summary

Carbohydrates functions: tough structural fibers (cellulose, chitin, peptidoglycan), cell identity (glycoproteins), energy storage (starch, glycogen), provide raw materials for other molecules. The carbons in a monosaccharide are numbered consecutively, starting with the end nearest the carbonyl group: monosaccharides can vary in the spatial arrangement of their atoms. Ex. they can vary by their configuration of hydroxyl functional groups. Monosaccharides tend to form ring structures in aqueous solutions, rather than linear structures: hydroxyl groups can be either above or below the plane of the ring either - glucose or -glucose. Each monosaccharide has a unique structure and function. Laboratory simulations have shown that most monosaccharides are readily synthesized under conditions that mimic the prebiotic soup. Ex. when formaldehyde molecules are heated in solution, they react with one another to form all the pentoses and hexoses. Polysaccharide: polymer that forms when monosaccharides are linked together.