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Starch (a polymer of glucose) is used as a storage polysaccharide in plants, being found in the form of both amylose and the branched amylopectin. In animals, the structurally similar glucose polymer is the more densely branched glycogen, sometimes called "animal starch". Glycogen's properties allow it to be metabolized more quickly, which ...
Glucose for metabolism is stored as a polymer, in plants mainly as amylose and amylopectin, and in animals as glycogen. Glucose circulates in the blood of animals as blood sugar. [6] [8] The naturally occurring form is d-glucose, while its stereoisomer l-glucose is produced synthetically in comparatively small amounts and is less biologically ...
Liver glycogen stores serve as a store of glucose for use throughout the body, particularly the central nervous system. [4] The human brain consumes approximately 60% of blood glucose in fasted, sedentary individuals. [4] Glycogen is an analogue of starch, a glucose polymer that functions as energy storage in plants.
Biopolymers can be sustainable, carbon neutral and are always renewable, because they are made from plant or animal materials which can be grown indefinitely. Since these materials come from agricultural crops, their use could create a sustainable industry. In contrast, the feedstocks for polymers derived from petrochemicals will eventually ...
Mannans are polymers containing the sugar mannose as a principal component. [1] [2] They are a type of polysaccharide found in hemicellulose, a major source of biomass found in higher plants such as softwoods. These polymers also typically contain two other sugars, galactose and glucose. They are often branched (unlike cellulose).
Some animals, particularly ruminants and termites, can digest cellulose with the help of symbiotic micro-organisms that live in their guts, such as Trichonympha. In human nutrition , cellulose is a non-digestible constituent of insoluble dietary fiber , acting as a hydrophilic bulking agent for feces and potentially aiding in defecation .
Chitin (C 8 H 13 O 5 N) n (/ ˈ k aɪ t ɪ n / KY-tin) is a long-chain polymer of N-acetylglucosamine, an amide derivative of glucose. Chitin is the second most abundant polysaccharide in nature (behind only cellulose ); an estimated 1 billion tons of chitin are produced each year in the biosphere. [ 1 ]
Skills development in biological illustration can involve two-dimensional art, animation, graphic design, and sculpture (such as necessary in custom prosthetics). It is possible to work in biological illustration without a specific degree, but a degree will significantly enhance an illustrator's employment opportunities.