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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 circulates in the blood of animals as blood sugar. [5] [7] The naturally occurring form is d-glucose, while its stereoisomer l-glucose is produced synthetically in comparatively small amounts and is less biologically active. [7] Glucose is a monosaccharide containing six carbon atoms and an aldehyde group, and is therefore an aldohexose ...
α(1→4)-glycosidic linkages in the glycogen oligomer α(1→4)-glycosidic and α(1→6)-glycosidic linkages in the glycogen oligomer. Glycogen is a branched biopolymer consisting of linear chains of glucose residues with an average chain length of approximately 8–12 glucose units and 2,000-60,000 residues per one molecule of glycogen.
It is found in grains or granules in the cell's cytoplasm and is composed of an α-linked glucose polymer with a degree of branching intermediate between amylopectin and glycogen, though more similar to the former. The polymers that make up floridean starch are sometimes referred to as "semi-amylopectin". [1]
It is responsible for the low level of basal glucose uptake required to sustain respiration in all cells. Levels in cell membranes are increased by reduced glucose levels and decreased by increased glucose levels. GLUT1 expression is upregulated in many tumors. GLUT2: Is a bidirectional transporter, allowing glucose to flow in 2 directions.
l-Glucose is an organic compound with formula C 6 H 12 O 6 or O=CH[CH(OH)] 5 H, specifically one of the aldohexose monosaccharides. As the l-isomer of glucose, it is the enantiomer of the more common d-glucose. l-Glucose does not occur naturally in living organisms, but can be synthesized in the laboratory.
The polymer main chain consists of α-1,6 glycosidic linkages between glucose monomers, with branches from α-1,3 linkages. This characteristic branching distinguishes a dextran from a dextrin , which is a straight chain glucose polymer tethered by α-1,4 or α-1,6 linkages.
Glucose may alternatively be formed from the phosphorolysis or hydrolysis of intracellular starch or glycogen. In animals, an isozyme of hexokinase called glucokinase is also used in the liver, which has a much lower affinity for glucose (K m in the vicinity of normal glycemia), and differs in regulatory properties. The different substrate ...