What is the difference between an alpha and beta carbohydrate?
1 Answer
Dec 16, 2016
They differ in the orientation of the
Explanation:
When the straight-chain form of a carbohydrate like glucose closes to form a ring, it forms a new chiral centre at
This gives two different structures.
Their Haworth formulas are
Structure 1
and
Structure 2
To assign the α or β configurations to these forms, you look at the relative positions of
In the α-form (Structure 1), the
In the β-form (Structure 2), the