Carbohydrates Lecture Notes PDF

Lecture 2 Al‐Turath University/College of Pharmacy Biochemistry I For Third Year Students/First Semester  Carbohydrates* Carbohydrates are the main sources of energy in the body, or may be defined as polyhydroxy aldehydes or ketones, or...

Lecture 2 Al‐Turath University/College of Pharmacy Biochemistry I For Third Year Students/First Semester  Carbohydrates* Carbohydrates are the main sources of energy in the body, or may be defined as polyhydroxy aldehydes or ketones, or substances that yield such compounds on hydrolysis. Carbohydrates are widely distributed in plants and animals; they have important structural and metabolic roles. In plants, glucose is synthesized from carbon dioxide and water by photosynthesis and stored as starch or used to synthesize the cellulose of the plant cell walls. Animals can synthesize carbohydrates from amino acids, but most are derived ultimately from plants. Brain cells and RBCs are almost wholly dependent on carbohydrates as the energy source. Classification of Important Sugars: Examples of ketoses of physiological significance: Hexoses of Physiological Importance: Disaccharides of Physiological Importance: Glycogen 8. Glycoproteins (also known as mucoproteins): are proteins containing branched or unbranched oligosaccharide chains, including fucose. They occur in cell membranes and many proteins are glycosylated.