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CARBOHYDRATES

A carbohydrate is a biomolecule consisting of carbon (C), hydrogen (H) and oxygen (O) atoms, usually with
a hydrogen–oxygen atom ratio of 2:1 (as in water); in other words, with the empirical formula Cm(H2O)n
(where m may be different from n). This formula holds true for monosaccharides. Some exceptions exist;
for example, deoxyribose, a sugar component of DNA, has the empirical formula C5H10O4. The
carbohydrates are technically hydrates of carbon, structurally it is more accurate to view them as aldoses
and ketoses.

The term is most common in biochemistry, where it is a synonym of 'saccharide', a group that includes
sugars, starch, and cellulose. The saccharides are divided into four chemical groups: monosaccharides,
disaccharides, oligosaccharides, and polysaccharides. Monosaccharides and disaccharides, the smallest
(lower molecular weight) carbohydrates, are commonly referred to as sugars. The word saccharide comes
from the Greek word σάκχαρον (sákkharon), meaning "sugar". While the scientific nomenclature of
carbohydrates is complex, the names of the monosaccharides and disaccharides very often end in the
suffix -ose. For example, grape sugar is the monosaccharide glucose, cane sugar is the disaccharide
sucrose, and milk sugar is the disaccharide lactose.

Carbohydrates are found in a wide variety of foods. The important sources are cereals (wheat, maize,
rice), potatoes, sugarcane, fruits, table sugar (sucrose), bread, milk, etc. Starch and sugar are the
important carbohydrates in our diet. Starch is abundant in potatoes, maize, rice and other cereals. Sugar
appears in our diet mainly as sucrose (table sugar), which is added to drinks and many prepared foods
such as jam, biscuits and cakes, and glucose and fructose which occur naturally in many fruits and some
vegetables.

MONOSACCHARIDES
Monosaccharides (from Greek monos: single, sacchar: sugar), also called simple sugars, are the most basic
units of carbohydrates. They are fundamental units of carbohydrates and cannot be further hydrolyzed to
simpler compounds. The general formula is CnH2nOn. They are the simplest form of sugar and are usually
colorless, water-soluble, and crystalline solids. Some monosaccharides have a sweet taste. Examples of
monosaccharides include glucose (dextrose), fructose (levulose) and galactose. Monosaccharides are the
building blocks of disaccharides (such as sucrose and lactose) and polysaccharides (such as cellulose and
starch). Further, each carbon atom that supports a hydroxyl group (so, all of the carbons except for the
primary and terminal carbon) is chiral, giving rise to a number of isomeric forms, all with the same
chemical formula. For instance, galactose and glucose are both aldohexoses, but have different physical
structures and chemical properties.

DISSACHARIDES
A disaccharide (also called a double sugar or biose) is the sugar formed when two monosaccharides
(simple sugars) are joined by glycosidic linkage. Like monosaccharides, disaccharides are soluble in water.
Three common examples are sucrose, lactose, and maltose.
Disaccharides are one of the four chemical groupings of carbohydrates (monosaccharides, disaccharides,
oligosaccharides, and polysaccharides). The most common types of disaccharides—sucrose, lactose, and
maltose—have twelve carbon atoms, with the general formula C12H22O11. The differences in these
disaccharides are due to atomic arrangements within the molecule.
The joining of simple sugars into a double sugar happens by a condensation reaction, which involves the
elimination of a water molecule from the functional groups only. Breaking apart a double sugar into its
two simple sugars is accomplished by hydrolysis with the help of a type of enzyme called a disaccharidase.
As building the larger sugar ejects a water molecule, breaking it down consumes a water molecule. These
reactions are vital in metabolism. Each disaccharide is broken down with the help of a corresponding
disaccharidase (sucrase, lactase, and maltase).

POLYSACCHARIDES
Polysaccharides are polymeric carbohydrate molecules composed of long chains of monosaccharide units
bound together by glycosidic linkages, and on hydrolysis give the constituent monosaccharides or
oligosaccharides. They range in structure from linear to highly branched. Examples include storage
polysaccharides such as starch and glycogen, and structural polysaccharides such as cellulose and chitin.
Polysaccharides are often quite heterogeneous, containing slight modifications of the repeating unit.
Depending on the structure, these macromolecules can have distinct properties from their
monosaccharide building blocks. They may be amorphous or even insoluble in water. When all the
monosaccharides in a polysaccharide are the same type, the polysaccharide is called a
homopolysaccharide or homoglycan, but when more than one type of monosaccharide is present they are
called heteropolysaccharides or heteroglycans.

Natural saccharides are generally of simple carbohydrates called monosaccharides with general formula
(CH2O)n where n is three or more. Examples of monosaccharides are glucose, fructose, and
glyceraldehyde. Polysaccharides, meanwhile, have a general formula of Cx(H2O)y where x is usually a large
number between 200 and 2500. When the repeating units in the polymer backbone are six-carbon
monosaccharides, as is often the case, the general formula simplifies to (C6H10O5)n, where typically
40≤n≤3000.

LIPIDS
In biology, a lipid is a substance of biological origin that is soluble in nonpolar solvents. It comprises a
group of naturally occurring molecules that include fats, waxes, sterols, fat-soluble vitamins (such as
vitamins A, D, E, and K), monoglycerides, diglycerides, triglycerides, and phospholipids. The main biological
functions of lipids include storing energy, signaling, and acting as structural components of cell
membranes. Lipids have applications in the cosmetic and food industries as well as in nanotechnology.
Scientists sometimes broadly define lipids as hydrophobic or amphiphilic small molecules; the amphiphilic
nature of some lipids allows them to form structures such as vesicles, multilamellar/unilamellar
liposomes, or membranes in an aqueous environment. Biological lipids originate entirely or in part from
two distinct types of biochemical subunits or "building-blocks": ketoacyl and isoprene groups. Using this
approach, lipids may be divided into eight categories: fatty acids, glycerolipids, glycerophospholipids,
sphingolipids, saccharolipids, and polyketides (derived from condensation of ketoacyl subunits); and
sterol lipids and prenol lipids (derived from condensation of isoprene subunits).
Although the term "lipid" is sometimes used as a synonym for fats, fats are a subgroup of lipids called
triglycerides. Lipids also encompass molecules such as fatty acids and their derivatives (including tri-, di-,
monoglycerides, and phospholipids), as well as other sterol-containing metabolites such as cholesterol.
Although humans and other mammals use various biosynthetic pathways both to break down and to
synthesize lipids, some essential lipids cannot be made this way and must be obtained from the diet.

CHOLESTEROL
Cholesterol (from the Ancient Greek chole- (bile) and stereos (solid), followed by the chemical suffix -ol
for an alcohol) is an organic molecule. It is a sterol (or modified steroid), a type of lipid molecule, and is
biosynthesized by all animal cells, because it is an essential structural component of all animal cell
membranes and is essential to maintain both membrane structural integrity and fluidity. Cholesterol
allows animal cells to function without a cell wall (which in other species protects membrane integrity and
cell viability); this allows animal cells to change shape rapidly.

In addition to its importance for animal cell structure, cholesterol also serves as a precursor for the
biosynthesis of steroid hormones, bile acid and vitamin D. Cholesterol is the principal sterol synthesized
by all animals. In vertebrates, hepatic cells typically produce the greatest amounts. It is absent among
prokaryotes (bacteria and archaea), although there are some exceptions, such as Mycoplasma, which
require cholesterol for growth.
François Poulletier de la Salle first identified cholesterol in solid form in gallstones in 1769. However, it
was not until 1815 that chemist Michel Eugène Chevreul named the compound "cholesterine".

FATS
Fat is one of the three main macronutrients, along with carbohydrate and protein. Fats, also known as
triglycerides, are esters of three fatty acid chains and the alcohol glycerol. The terms "lipid", "oil" and "fat"
are often confused. "Lipid" is the general term, though a lipid is not necessarily a triglyceride. "Oil"
normally refers to a lipid with short or unsaturated fatty acid chains that is liquid at room temperature,
while "fat" (in the strict sense) may specifically refer to lipids that are solids at room temperature –
however, "fat" (in the broad sense) may be used in food science as a synonym for lipid. Fats, like other
lipids, are generally hydrophobic, and are soluble in organic solvents and insoluble in water.
Fat is an important foodstuff for many forms of life, and fats serve both structural and metabolic functions.
They are a necessary part of the diet of most heterotrophs (including humans). Some fatty acids that are
set free by the digestion of fats are called essential because they cannot be synthesized in the body from
simpler constituents. There are two essential fatty acids (EFAs) in human nutrition: alpha-linolenic acid
(an omega-3 fatty acid) and linoleic acid (an omega-6 fatty acid). Other lipids needed by the body can be
synthesized from these and other fats. Fats and other lipids are broken down in the body by enzymes
called lipases produced in the pancreas.
Fat is one of the three main macronutrients, along with carbohydrate and protein. Fats, also known as
triglycerides, are esters of three fatty acid chains and the alcohol glycerol. The terms "lipid", "oil" and "fat"
are often confused. "Lipid" is the general term, though a lipid is not necessarily a triglyceride. "Oil"
normally refers to a lipid with short or unsaturated fatty acid chains that is liquid at room temperature,
while "fat" (in the strict sense) may specifically refer to lipids that are solids at room temperature –
however, "fat" (in the broad sense) may be used in food science as a synonym for lipid. Fats, like other
lipids, are generally hydrophobic, and are soluble in organic solvents and insoluble in water.
Proteins (/ˈproʊˌtiːnz/ or /ˈproʊti.ɪnz/) are large biomolecules, or macromolecules, consisting of one or
more long chains of amino acid residues. Proteins perform a vast array of functions within organisms,
including catalysing metabolic reactions, DNA replication, responding to stimuli, and transporting
molecules from one location to another. Proteins differ from one another primarily in their sequence of
amino acids, which is dictated by the nucleotide sequence of their genes, and which usually results in
protein folding into a specific three-dimensional structure that determines its activity.
A linear chain of amino acid residues is called a polypeptide. A protein contains at least one long
polypeptide. Short polypeptides, containing less than 20–30 residues, are rarely considered to be proteins
and are commonly called peptides, or sometimes oligopeptides. The individual amino acid residues are
bonded together by peptide bonds and adjacent amino acid residues. The sequence of amino acid
residues in a protein is defined by the sequence of a gene, which is encoded in the genetic code. In general,
the genetic code specifies 20 standard amino acids; however, in certain organisms the genetic code can
include selenocysteine and—in certain archaea—pyrrolysine. Shortly after or even during synthesis, the
residues in a protein are often chemically modified by post-translational modification, which alters the
physical and chemical properties, folding, stability, activity, and ultimately, the function of the proteins.
Sometimes proteins have non-peptide groups attached, which can be called prosthetic groups or
cofactors. Proteins can also work together to achieve a particular function, and they often associate to
form stable protein complexes.
Once formed, proteins only exist for a certain period of time and are then degraded and recycled by the
cell's machinery through the process of protein turnover. A protein's lifespan is measured in terms of its
half-life and covers a wide range. They can exist for minutes or years with an average lifespan of 1–2 days
in mammalian cells. Abnormal or misfolded proteins are degraded more rapidly either due to being
targeted for destruction or due to being unstable.

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