Question

Monosaccharides are the most basic form of carbohydrates. Monosaccharides can be linked together to form long, compact chains called polysaccharides, which require less space than the equivalent amount of monosaccharides. Both plants and animals store excess carbohydrates as polysaccharides. Which of the following best describes why the formation of polysaccharides is beneficial to organisms? A. Polysaccharide formation allows organisms to store more energy per carbohydrate bond. B. Polysaccharide formation limits the number of carbohydrate bonds that can be formed. C. Polysaccharide formation limits the amount of energy an organism can store. D. Polysaccharide formation allows organisms to store energy more efficiently.

Answer 1

Polysaccharide formation allows organism to store energy efficiently. The storage form of food in animals is glycogen and in plants it is starch. Both glycogen and starch are polysaccharides of glucose. Many glucose units are linked together by condensation reaction to form polysaccharide. Compared to having several molecules of glucose in a bulk it is better to store it in the form of condensed bulk i.e polysaccharide. Thus polysaccharides which are formed by condensation reaction i.e by the loss of water molecules are easy to store.

Polysacchrides are: a) stored in the form of condensed bulk

b) they are chemically non-reactive

c) they are osmolytically inactive