Chapter 25: Carbohydrates

There is lots of terminology associated with carbohydrates and their organic chemistry, some of which we have met before.  The terms are summarised alphabetically below. Follow the links for more detailed information.
 

Acetal	The product of the reaction of an aldehyde with excess alcohol
Aldose	A carbohydrate with an aldehyde in the open chain form.
Anomeric center	In the cyclic sugars, the C atom with two C-O single bonds
Anomeric effect	A preference for polar substituents to be axial on the anomeric center
Anomers	Two stereoisomers due to different substituent arrangement at the anomeric center
Carbohydrate	"carbon hydrates" = Cn(H2O)m  also referred to as sugars or saccharides
Disaccharide	A carbohydrate composed of 2 monosaccharides units
D-sugar	Defines the stereochemistry at a specific chirality center relative to that of glyceraldehyde
Fischer projection	A stereochemical representation commonly used for carbohydrates
Furanose	The cyclic form of a sugar with a 5 membered ring
Glycoside	A carbohydrate where the -OH at the anomeric center has been substituted
Glycosidic bond	The bond that links the substituent to the anomeric center
Hemi-acetal	The product of the reaction of an aldehyde with one equivalent of an alcohol
Hemi-ketal	The product of the reaction of a ketone with one equivalent of an alcohol
Hexoses	Carbohydrates containing 6 C atoms
Ketal	The product of the reaction of a ketone with excess alcohol
Ketose	A carbohydrate with a ketone in the open chain form.
L-sugar	Defines the stereochemistry at a specific chirality center relative to that of glyceraldehyde
Monosaccharide	A carbohydrate with a single carbohydrate unit
Oligosaccharide	A carbohydrate composed of a "few" (3-10) monosaccharide units
Pentoses	Carbohydrates containing 5 C atoms
Polysaccharide	A carbohydrate composed of a many (10+) monosaccharide units
Pyranose	The cyclic form of a sugar with a 6 membered ring
Saccharide	Another word for a carbohydrate
Tetroses	Carbohydrates containing 4 C atoms