Carbohydrates - Polysaccharides
Polysaccharides are formed when a dehydration reaction occurs between a large number of monosaccharides. Amylose (below) is a polysaccharide composed of between 60 and 300 glucose units.
Another important polysaccharide, amylopectin (not shown), is similar to amylose except that it is composed of chains up to 10,000 glucose units long with shorter 24 to 30 unit branches on it.
Starch (not shown), the most important carbohydrate in the human diet, is produced in plants and is composed of 10 to 20 percent amylose with 80 to 90 percent amylopectin. Glycogen (not shown), or animal starch, is similar to amylopectin except that the branching occurs more frequently. Cellulose (below) is a linear chain of glucose units connected in a slightly different fashion than in amylose. The difference in orientation of the glucose molecules is why humans are incapable of digesting cellulose.
Continue and read about reducing sugars.
