Carbohydrates: Monosaccharides and Disaccharides

Vocabulary flashcards covering the classification, chemical formulas, properties, and reactions of carbohydrates, including monosaccharides, disaccharides, and polysaccharides.

Carbohydrates

Organic compounds containing carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen atoms, where the ratio of hydrogen to oxygen atoms is $2:1$.

General Formula of Carbohydrates

$$C_n(H_2O)_y$$

Monosaccharides

Carbohydrates consisting of one monosaccharide unit; they are simple sugars that are soluble in water, have a crystalline structure, and possess a sweet taste.

Disaccharides

Carbohydrates consisting of two monosaccharide units joined by a glycosidic bond; they are soluble in water.

Polysaccharides

Carbohydrates consisting of many monosaccharide units joined together by glycosidic bonds.

Glucose

A six-carbon hexose sugar with the chemical formula $C_6H_{12}O_6$; it is the most common naturally occurring monosaccharide and exists in a ring form when dissolved in water.

Hexose

A six-carbon sugar, such as glucose.

Glycosidic Bond

The bond that joins monosaccharide units together to form disaccharides and polysaccharides.

Condensation (in Disaccharide Formation)

An enzyme-catalysed process in which two monosaccharides join together and a water molecule is lost.

Sucrose

A disaccharide with the chemical formula $C_{12}H_{22}O_{11}$, formed along with water when glucose and fructose bond together.

Sucrose Formation Reaction

$\text{Glucose} + \text{Fructose} \rightarrow \text{Sucrose} + \text{Water}$ (monosaccharide + monosaccharide yields disaccharide + water).