Carbohydrates in Animal Nutrition

These flashcards cover essential concepts related to carbohydrates in animal nutrition, their structure, functions, and digestion.

What is the chemical formula that accounts for the term carbohydrate?

CH2O

What are the two major classes of carbohydrates?

Simple carbohydrates and complex carbohydrates.

What are monosaccharides?

The simplest form of carbohydrate that cannot be reduced into smaller units by hydrolysis.

What is the most abundant monosaccharide in nature?

Glucose.

What do disaccharides consist of?

Two monosaccharide units joined by covalent bonds.

What is the most significant disaccharide nutritionally?

Sucrose, made of glucose and fructose.

What characterizes oligosaccharides?

Short chains of monosaccharide units that contain 3 to 10 units.

What are polysaccharides?

Long chains of monosaccharide units, numbering from several to thousands.

What are the major polysaccharides relevant in nutrition?

Glycogen, starch, and cellulose.

What is the principal structural carbohydrate in animals?

Chitin.

What is the primary function of carbohydrates in animals?

To provide structural support, serve as storage compounds, and act as transport compounds.

What is the principal storage carbohydrate in animals?

Glycogen.

Why is glycogen considered inferior to lipids as an energy-storage compound?

Because glycogen is highly hydrated, yielding low energy per unit of weight.

What role do carbohydrates play in transport?

They transport energy as small molecules in body fluids.

What is the principal transport carbohydrate in vertebrates?

Glucose.

Why do animals synthesize carbohydrates?

There are no essential carbohydrates; animals can synthesize all carbohydrates needed.

What is a notable nutritional problem with carbohydrates for some animals?

Inability to digest cellulose and other structural polysaccharides.

What are the two key steps in the digestion of polysaccharides?

Involvement of carbohydrases and brush border enzymes.

What enzymes participate in the digestion of polysaccharides?

Salivary amylase and pancreatic alpha-amylase.

How does salivary amylase function in carbohydrate digestion?

It breaks down starches into disaccharides and trisaccharides during mastication.

What does lactase do?

It hydrolyzes lactose into glucose and galactose.

What problems can arise from lactose intolerance?

Digestive problems such as abdominal pain, gas, diarrhea, and vomiting.

How are monosaccharides absorbed in the intestinal epithelium?

By facilitated diffusion and cotransport mechanisms.