What monosaccharides make up starch?

1 Answer
Jun 27, 2015

Only one monosaccharide makes up starch, and that is glucose.

Explanation:

Starch exists in two different forms: amylose and amylopectin.

Each form is a polymer of glucose molecules.

The structure of glucose, "C"_6"H"_12"O"_6, is

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Amylose consists of long, chain-like molecules of glucose units joined together.

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The structure of amylopectin is similar to that of amylose, but there are numerous branches along the chain.

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We could write the equation for the formation of starch in either form as

underbrace(n"C"_6"H"_12"O"_6)_color(red)("glucose") → underbrace(("C"_6"H"_10"O"_5)_n)_color(red)("starch") + n"H"_2"O"