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It bends the light rays to the left when passed through its aqueous solution.
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When the structure of D-glucose is drawn on a paper, the -OH groups are written on the right side of carbon atoms, except the 3 rd carbon atom that has the -OH group on its left side. It is the most abundant form of glucose present in nature. When a ray of light is passed through a solution of D-glucose, it bends the light in the right direction. These are the two isomeric forms of glucose that differ in the optical properties. When dissolved in solution, each of them can have one of the following ring structure. The two different structural forms of glucose are as follows When in ring form, each of these 16 isomers can have one of the two possible orientations alpha or beta. Number of isomers = 2 n (here, n=number of chiral carbons)Įxcept for the first and the last carbon atom, the other four carbon atoms in glucose are chiral. The formula to find the number of isomers based on chiral carbons is as follows A chiral carbon is the one that is attached to four different groups of atoms. The number of isomers of a molecule depends on the number of chiral carbons in it. Isomers are the molecules that have the same molecular formula but differ with respect to the arrangement of atom in the three-dimensional space. This ring structure of glucose is known as glucopyranose. Five carbon atoms and one oxygen atom, belonging to the aldehydic functional group, make the corners or angles of the hexagon. The ring formed by glucose is hexagonal in structure. Glucose makes a ring when it is dissolved in an aqueous solution. Because of the presence of the aldehydic functional group, glucose is also known as an aldohexose. The first carbon of glucose is a part of the aldehyde group. One hydroxyl group is attached to each carbon atom, except the first carbon. When the glucose structure is represented in the form of an open chain, it can be seen to have a linear chain of six carbon atom. The linear chain structure and the ring structure co-exist in equilibrium with each other in an aqueous solution. The structural formula of glucose can be represented in two ways The molecular formula of glucose is represented as C 6H 12O 6. It is the most important hexose present in our body. Glucose is a monosaccharide made up of six carbon atoms. In this article, we will discuss the structure of glucose in its various forms, properties, isomers, metabolism in the human body, and medical conditions associated with it. Different medical conditions can arise if the blood glucose levels fall or increase above this range. Glucose is present in human blood within a specific range. Excess glucose is stored in the body in the form of storage molecules. Glucose provides energy to all the cells in our body except the cardiac myocytes. It belongs to the hexose category of monosaccharides. Glucose is the most important monosaccharide present in our body. What are the normal blood glucose levels?.
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