What Is Glucose Used for?

Glucose is one of the most critical carbohydrates needed by our bodies. The breakdown of this simple sugar gives living cells the energy they require to survive.

Features

Glucose is a six-carbon molecule with multiple hydroxyl groups attached. Its most common form is a ringed pyranose structure, shown in the image. It can also be found in a five-ringed furanose form or a linear string of carbons, but these are not favorable structures.

Function

Glucose is mainly used by the body for short-term energy. Glucose is taken up by cells and converted to pyruvate in a multistep, multienzyme process called glycolysis. Glucose residues are also linked to serine and threonine amino acids of glycoproteins.

Types

Besides the forms found in solution, glucose can have two configurations. D-glucose is the form which can be utilized by the human body. Its mirror image configuration, L-glucose, cannot be recognized by our enzymes.

Significance

Hyperglycemia, or too much glucose in the blood, and hypoglycemia, or too little glucose in the blood, are hallmark characteristics of diabetes.

Fun Fact

The amount of glucose stored in our bodies would allow us to survive for about a day. It is our fat stores that allow for longer starvation.