Glycobiology of Food

INTRODUCTION

         Plants use carbon dioxide and water to produce glucose through the process of photosynthesis. The combination of glucose with other monosaccharide gives starch and cellulose. Energy is stored in plants in form of carbohydrate, thus carbohydrate is known as the energy giving food. The energy giving food is composed majorly of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen and has the general molecular formula Cx(H20)y. Carbohydrates can be classified naturally into simple sugar which include the monosaccharide e.g. glucose, fructose, mannose and galactose, the disaccharides (formed from the condensation of two monosaccharide with the loss of a water molecule) e.g. sucrose, maltose and lactose. Complex sugar also called polysaccharides (formed from the condensation of more than two monosaccharide) e.g. starch, glycogen and cellulose. Carbohydrate is commonly, found on fruits, sap of plants e.g. tuber plants and grain crops. And also in honey. Glycobiology is the study of the structure, biosynthesis, chemical synthesis and biology of saccharides (sugar chains or glycans). The importance of sugar can never be overemphasized since it is an essential component of a living organisms and it serves as the major source of energy. According to the research done by various fields like medical, biochemical and biotechnological field sugar plays an important role in biology.