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The simplest carbohydrates are called monosaccharide s, or simple sugars. In biochemistry, carbohydrates are often called saccharide s, from the Greek sakcharon, meaning sugar, although not all the saccharides are sweet. They are the basis of biological polymers that impart strength to various structural components of organisms (e.g., cellulose and chitin), and they are the primary source of energy storage in the form of starch and glycogen. These molecules are also vital parts of macromolecular structures that store and transmit genetic information (i.e., DNA and RNA).

They are abundant in terrestrial ecosystems, many forms of which we use as food sources. Carbohydrates have myriad different functions. This view represents these molecules simply as “hydrated” carbon atom chains in which water molecules attach to each carbon atom, leading to the term “carbohydrates.” Although all carbohydrates contain carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen, there are some that also contain nitrogen, phosphorus, and/or sulfur. From a chemical viewpoint, carbohydrates are primarily a combination of carbon and water, and many of them have the empirical formula (CH 2O) n, where n is the number of repeated units. The most abundant biomolecules on earth are carbohydrate s.

Describe the function of monosaccharides and polysaccharides within a cell.Give examples of monosaccharides and polysaccharides.

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