CHEMICAL PROPERTIES
Monosaccharides have two special chemical properties
(i) Reducing Nature.
- All the monosaccharides are reducing sugars.
- It can reduce Cu2+ (cupric form) to Cu+ (cuprous state) in Benedict's or Fehling's test.
- The test is used to detect glucose in urine.
(ii) Glycosidic Bond.
- It is a bond established between two monosaccharides (C - O - C).
- The bonds join monosaccharides to form complex carbohydrates.
- Nucleoside is produced by forming an N-glycosidic bond between a monosaccharide and a nitrogen base.
- Glycosidic bonds are of two types,
- C - O - C -
and
- C - N - C -