The biological significance of carbohydrates in living organisms
The carbohydrates are a large group of organic compounds, made up of the elements carbon, hydrogen and oxygen. In carbohydrates the ratio of carbon to hydrogen is usually 1:2, as in water (H(2)0).
Carbohydrates can basically be divided into two large groups, the sugars and the non-sugars (polysaccharides). The sugars can be further separated into simple sugars, the monosaccharides (e.g. glucose and fructose), and the compound of double sugars, the disaccharides (e.g. sucrose). These, when hydrolyzed, yield monosaccharides.
Carbohydrates are extremely important in living organisms. The make up most of plants. Constituting 60 - 90% of the dry mass. Carbohydrates are used in plants as an energy source, as a means of storing energy (as Starch, a polysaccharide). Cellulose, a polysaccharide, is an important structural component of plant cell walls, where it's tensile strength is important. The products of photosynthesis are transported internally as sucrose (a disaccharide), and the energy source for metabolism in the cells is glucose (a monosaccharide). Animals consume carbohydrates as an important component of a balanced diet, either directly or from eating plants. Humans not only eat carbohydrates (making up 70% of the average diet) but also use them in clothing (Cotton, linen, rayon), housing (wood), fuel (wood), and in paper, books and packaging (wood). Wood consists of carbohydrates of the cell walls impregnated with lignin.
The carbohydrates are a large group of organic compounds, made up of the elements carbon, hydrogen and oxygen. In carbohydrates the ratio of carbon to hydrogen is usually 1:2, as in water (H(2)0).
Carbohydrates can basically be divided into two large groups, the sugars and the non-sugars (polysaccharides). The sugars can be further separated into simple sugars, the monosaccharides (e.g. glucose and fructose), and the compound of double sugars, the disaccharides (e.g. sucrose). These, when hydrolyzed, yield monosaccharides.
Carbohydrates are extremely important in living organisms. The make up most of plants. Constituting 60 - 90% of the dry mass. Carbohydrates are used in plants as an energy source, as a means of storing energy (as Starch, a polysaccharide). Cellulose, a polysaccharide, is an important structural component of plant cell walls, where it's tensile strength is important. The products of photosynthesis are transported internally as sucrose (a disaccharide), and the energy source for metabolism in the cells is glucose (a monosaccharide). Animals consume carbohydrates as an important component of a balanced diet, either directly or from eating plants. Humans not only eat carbohydrates (making up 70% of the average diet) but also use them in clothing (Cotton, linen, rayon), housing (wood), fuel (wood), and in paper, books and packaging (wood). Wood consists of carbohydrates of the cell walls impregnated with lignin.
