Carbohydrate Lab Report

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Introduction
The carbohydrate is such an important macromolecule. It is the main source of energy for our body so our body cannot survive without it. The carbohydrate may appear in different shapes. The classification of carbohydrate depends on the structure of the molecule. The first one is monosaccharides that contain only one sugar unit. For example, glucose, fructose and galactose. The second one is disaccharides that contain two sugar units. For example, lactose, maltose and sucrose. The third one is oligosaccharides that contain three to ten sugar units. For example, raffinose and stachyose. The last one is polysaccharides that can contain more than thousand sugar units and it is usually glucose. For example, amylose, amylopectin and glycogen. (1)
The glycogen is the energy storage form of glucose in animals and human body. When the carbohydrate enters a body, the body will divide it into the simplest form of the sugar that is glucose so it can be used as energy source. Then the excessive glucose will …show more content…

After added all the results from his experiments, he discovered the glycogen. At that time, he did not know the specific structure of glycogen. He only knew that the glycogen contains many glucose units but he was not able to describe the bonds and all these details of the structure. (3)

After the discovery of the glycogen, a lot of scientists tried to figure out the specific structure of glycogen and the bonds inside it. Until they end up with the structure we have it nowadays. (Figure 1)

Glycogen is a polymer of glucose. It is highly branched. In one branch, the glucose units connected to each other by α-1, 4 glycosidic linkages. And connected two branches by α-1, 6 glycosidic linkages. The glycogen has one reducing end that contains a free carbon number and many non-reducing end that are the location of all glucose removals or additions. (4) (5)

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