Page 155 - The Manga Guide to Biochemistry
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Look carefully at the carbon atoms (C) in the following figure. This is the ring structure
of glucose, and the numbers 1 through 6 have been assigned as shown.
oCH2OH
H nC OH
mC H Cj
OH H
HO lC Ck OH
H OH
Wait, I think I get it!
The numbers in the α(1→4) glycosidic bond and the α(1→6) glycosidic bond
refer to those numbers!
Right you are! The α(1→4) glycosidic bond means that the first carbon of one glucose
is attached via a glycosidic bond to the fourth carbon of the neighboring glucose.*
O O O O
jm
OH HO jm
O
H+ and OH- detach →α(1 4) glycosidic bond
and combine to
form h2O.
Okay, so the α(1→6) glycosidic bond means that the first carbon of one glucose is
attached to the sixth carbon of the next glucose in exactly the same way, right?
Yup, but when the carbon atoms at the first and sixth positions are attached, the
glucose molecules can’t be side-by-side in a straight line.
* The glucose molecules are simplified throughout this section in order to highlight the relevant bonds.
Biochemistry in Our Everyday Lives 141
