Clase 3 de Biología I

Carbohidratos I
Carbohydrates

Carbohydrates are found in a wide diversity of food,

from fruits and vegetables to breads and grains.
Carbohydrates are a staple in many diets throughout
the world because they supply an easily accessible
energy source for our bodies.
(CH2O)n : Monosaccharide

(CH2O)6: Glucose

Covalent bond: glycosidic linkage: Disaccharide

Oligosaccharide: 3 – 10 monosaccharides

Polysaccharide: 100 – 1,000 monosaccharides

Monosaccharide: 3 – 7 C, with carbonyl and hydroxyl groups

Location of carbonyl group / carbon skeleton length / arrangements of

hydroxyl groups around the asymmetric carbon
Monosaccharides are classified according to their
molecular structure.

Isómeros

Aldosa Cetosa
Figure 1: Structures of some common monosaccharides. Aldohexosas
The sugars ribose, ribulose, glucose, and galactose are shown. The features that define a monosaccharide are evident: the position of the carbonyl
group, the carbon skeleton, and the spatial arrangement of the hydroxyl groups around the carbons. Ribose and ribulose are grouped together, as are
glucose and galactose, because they are isomers. Isomers are molecules with the same formula but a different arrangement of atoms. Ribose is an
aldose, and ribulose is a ketose (differences are outlined in blue). Both glucose and galactose are aldohexoses, but the hydroxyl group on carbon four is
on opposite sides (position of structural difference is outlined in blue). These structural differences cause the paired molecules to possess different
biological properties.
 abajo

arriba

Figure 2: Glucose can transform between linear and ring structures.

Glucose is often shown in a linear form (a). However, in aqueous solutions, glucose occurs in both linear and ring forms (b). The ring can assume two
different conformations referred to as the α (alpha) and β (beta) forms, depending on whether the newly formed hydroxyl group faces up or down
relative to the rest of the ring.
Figure 3: Fructose.
The linear and ring forms of the carbohydrate fructose, along with its intermediate form.
Monosaccharides Function as Building Blocks
and Sources of Energy

(CH2O)n, where n can be as small as 3, as in C3H6O3,

or as large as 7, as in C7H14O7.
Figure 4: Benzene.
An example of a six-carbon ring structure. Is it a carbohydrate?
 Glucosa Fructosa

Figure 5: An example of a disaccharide.

Sucrose is a disaccharide sugar made up of a glucose monomer and a fructose monomer.
Glycosidic linkages join monosaccharides into large polymers

Extra glucose: monomers joined into polysaccharide (long-term storage)

Glycosidic linkages between monosaccharides (covalent bonds)

Dehydration reaction (-OH lost from one monomer and H from other= H 2O)

Orientation of linkage may be up or down (alpha or beta

orientation)
1-2 glycosidic linkage
2 different dissacharides of glucose, which differ on whether alpa or beta forms
are joined to a beta glucose

Figure 6: Maltose and cellobiose are two different

disaccharides of glucose.
The linkage between two molecules of glucose can result in two different
disaccharides depending on whether α-glucose or β-glucose (differing by the
position of a hydroxyl group, see Figure 9-2) is joined to another molecule of β-
glucose. If a molecule of α-glucose is linked to a molecule of β-glucose (left), an α-
1,4-glycosidic linkage joins the glucose monomers, forming the disaccharide
maltose. Maltose is formed during the breakdown of starch by grains such as
barley. If instead a molecule of β-glucose is linked to another molecule of β-
glucose (right), a β-1,4-glycosidic linkage joins the monomers, and the
disaccharide cellobiose is formed instead. Cellobiose is formed during the
breakdown of plant material by some bacterial species.
The Disaccharide Sucrose Is a Transport Form of Sugar in Plants

Sugars are often transported in plants and other organisms

as disaccharides

Sucrose: glucose and fructose

 Diversity of Structure and Function in Carbohydrate Molecules

Carbohydrates make up many of the staple foods that we eat,

including rice, corn, honey, fruit and milk.

They are also widely distributed throughout the natural world

in plants, arthropods, and bacteria. With their diverse
composition and structures, carbohydrates have multiple
functions. In particular, they store energy for organisms and are
the basis of many structures in living things.

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Poly and oligosaccharides: energy storage / cell recognition molecules

Structure determines function

Polysaccharides: oxidized = energy during breaking of polymers

Monomers into glycolisis: glucose is converted into pyruvate and protons: ATP

Used in structures that protect or support cells

Organisms use polysaccharides for energy storage

Plants: starch (glucose). Amyloplast / chloroplasts

Hydrolysis of starch= glucose monomers + H2O

Hydrolysis is the opposite of a dehydration reaction

Amylose (simpler) / Amylopectin (complex)
Animals / Fungi: glycogen (made of alpha-glucose chains) (liver / muscles)

Hydrolised to generate glucose monomers

Figure 7: Microscopy images of the storage polysaccharides glycogen and starch in
cells.
a) Mouse liver cells reveal glycogen granules, which are stained magenta (400x
magnification).
b) Transmission electron microscopy of a chloroplast with starch granules ("st") (Scale
bar: 500 nm).
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Organisms use polysaccharides to build cellular structures

Cellulose: like starch but β-glucose

3-dimensional structure allows hydrogen bonding between

cellulose molecules = strong groups of molecules called
microfibrils
Polysaccharides Function as Storage Forms of Energy or as Structural Materials

 Starch:  chains of glucose molecules:  amylose

(unbranched), and amylopectin (branched)

Amylose and amylopectin are stored as

starch grains within plant cells
Polysaccharides Function as Storage Forms of Energy or as Structural Materials

Cellulose:  chains of glucose molecules

Amylose and amylopectin are stored as

starch grains within plant cells
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Organisms use polysaccharides to build cellular structures.

cellulose is part of the microfibril structure of plant cell walls. It is essentially a polymeric chain of glucose molecules in a
crystalline structure.
Chitin: in algae, arthropods, crustaceans and insects

Glycosidic linkages join N-containing monomers related to

glucose / H bonds connects the monomers chains
Peptidoglycan: polysaccharide + short AA in bacterial
cell wall
Figure 9: Distinguishing features of important polysaccharides.
Cellulose consists of β-glucose monomers connected into
polymers by β-glycosidic linkages. Each polymer chain of
cellulose is unbranched. The β-glycosidic linkage is what allows
cellulose to form long, straight chains. The β-glycosidic linkage
also allows the chains to align so that hydrogen bonds form
between straight chains. The resulting fibrils of cellulose are
extremely tough, allowing cellulose to provide structural
support for plants. Starch, the primary carbohydrate storage
form in plants, consists of strands of α-glucose monomers that
are either branched or unbranched. The α-glycosidic linkages in
starch result in an orientation of the hydroxyl groups that
differs from the alignment in cellulose. As a result, starch has a
very different molecular architecture than cellulose. In starch,
the hydrogen bonds cause starch polymers to form into a
hollow helix. Glycogen, the primary carbohydrate storage form
in animals, consists of strands of α-glucose monomers that are
also branched. Glycogen is structurally similar to amylopectin,
but glycogen contains more branches. Glycogen also forms a
hollow helix shape, again because of the α-glycosidic linkages
that connect the glucose monomers.
Long-chain polymers of glucose (a- and b-glucans)

a (1→4)
Amylose

b (1→4)
Cellulose

a (1→4)
a (1→6) branches
Amylopectine
Organisms use oligosaccharides for signaling and
cell-cell recognition.

Help identify cell’s identity

Glycoproteins: covalenty bonded to

oligosaccharides

Immune response: differentiation between

Native and foreign cells mediated by
glycoproteins
Investigación básica: Diabetes tipo 2. Altos niveles de glucosa en sangre Dieta baja en almidón

Figure 10: Researchers have focused on developing advanced diagnostics for diabetes.
Studies of diabetes patients show that the blood self-test like the image above deters patients
who need regular insulin. As a solution, scientists have developed non-invasive methods such as
a test to measure acetone in the breath, another indicator, to diagnose and treat Type 2
diabetes.
4 Lípidos
 
Grupo 4A: Archea
Grupo 4B: Steroids