key term - Monosaccharide

Definition

A monosaccharide is the simplest form of carbohydrates, consisting of a single sugar molecule that cannot be hydrolyzed into smaller sugar units. They serve as fundamental building blocks for more complex carbohydrates and are crucial for energy metabolism in living organisms.

Related terms

Disaccharide:

A carbohydrate composed of two monosaccharide molecules bonded together through a glycosidic linkage.

Polysaccharide:

Large carbohydrate molecules made up of ten or more monosaccharide units joined together through glycosidic linkages, functioning as storage forms of energy or structural components in cells.

Glycosidic linkage: A type of covalent bond that joins a carbohydrate (sugar) molecule to another molecule, which can be another carbohydrate or a different type of molecule altogether, critical in forming di- and polysaccharides from monosaccharides