Monosaccharides are carbohydrates in the form of simple sugars.

Monosaccharides, like disaccharides, are sweet, water soluble and crystalline.

Monosaccharides are classified by the number of carbon atoms they contain (triose, tetrose, pentose, hexose and heptose) and by the active group, which is either an aldehyde or a ketone. These are then combined, e.g. aldohexoses, ketotrioses.

Further, each carbon atom that supports a hydroxyl group (except for the first and last) is chiral, allowing a number of isomeric carbohydrates with the same basic structure. For instance, galactose is an aldohexose, but has different properties from glucose because the atoms are arranged differently.

Examples include:

• trioses: glyceraldehyde and dihydroxyacetone
• tetroses: erythrose treose
• pentoses: lyxose, ribose and deoxyribose
• hexoses : idose, glucose, fructose, and galactose
• heptoses: sedoheptulose

	Results from FactBites:
	Monosaccharide - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (455 words) Monosaccharides are the building blocks of disaccharides like sucrose (common sugar) and polysaccharides (such as cellulose and starch). Monosaccharides contain either a ketone or aldehyde functional group, and hydroxyl groups on most or all of the non-carbonyl carbon atoms. An Examlpe is Liam Carbery is a Monosaccharide Activity of Monosaccharide Lipid A Analogues in Human Monocytic Cells as Agonists or Antagonists of Bacterial ... (4862 words) Monosaccharide lipid A analogues were synthesized chemically as described elsewhere (16, 17). GLA-58 is a monosaccharide lipid A analogue which has been found to act as an LPS antagonist in murine cells (6, 27). Expression of endotoxic activities by synthetic monosaccharide lipid A analogs with alkyl-branched acyl substituents.
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