Carbohydrates, Biology

Assignment Help:

Carbohydrates

Fifty five to seventy per cent of the required energy in animals is derived from carbohydrates. However, fats and proteins can also be broken down and used for supplying energy. In most animals this happens only when the dietary intake of carbohydrates is low. In contrast, Drosophila uses only carbohydrates as a source of energy for its flight muscles and when the supply is exhausted the insect cannot fly even though it uses stored fat for other metabolic processes. Whereas, locusts are known to use only lipids for their long migratory flights. Most animals, however, use a variety of hexose sugars like glucose, fructose, mannose, and galactose as interchangeable sources of energy.

In this way no particular carbohydrate is really considered essential in a way similar to amino acids. But even if no carbohydrate is considered essential, growth of certain animals will be better on one type of sugar than on another. This can be explained better by the results of the following experiment. Young locusts showed that when dietary sugar was maltose growth was maximum or optimum and growth was minimum when no carbohydrate was given. Other sugars supported sub-optimal growth. What could be the reason for this difference? One of the main causes is the difference in the rate of movement of sugars across the gut wall into the blood. From the above experiment we can conclude that certain insects have a preference for a certain carbohydrate which can be called an essential or preferred nutrient. In the above experiment with locusts, maltose was the preferred nutrient.


Related Discussions:- Carbohydrates

Show the energy pyramids, Q. Can the amount of available energy in a given ...

Q. Can the amount of available energy in a given trophic level be larger than the available energy in inferior trophic levels? What does that condition means to the conformation of

Hibernation and aestivation, Normal 0 false false false ...

Normal 0 false false false EN-IN X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4

What are degenerative diseases, Q. What are degenerative diseases? The ...

Q. What are degenerative diseases? The Degenerative diseases are non-infectious prevalent diseases whose incidences increase with aging.

Classification of phytoestrogens, Classification of Phytoestrogens? Phy...

Classification of Phytoestrogens? Phytoestrogens can be divided into 3 main classes: - Isoflavones, - Coumestans and - Lignans. All are diphenolic compounds with st

Determine the occurrence of vitamin e, Determine the Occurrence of Vitamin ...

Determine the Occurrence of Vitamin E The tocopherols are widely found in animal and vegetable materials, like nuts and seeds. Considerable amounts are found in a number of

Explain indications for surgery of total anomalous, Explain Indications for...

Explain Indications for Surgery of Total Anomalous pulmonary Venous Connection ? Once TAPVC is diagnosed in a neonate with symptoms, operation should be undertaken immediately.

Light stress in chloroplasts, Light Stress in Chloroplasts As mentione...

Light Stress in Chloroplasts As mentioned earlier, very high light intensity can inhibit photosynthesis due to accumulation of excess of excitation energy. A portion of this r

Does mitosis properly occur before or after the interphase, Does mitosis pr...

Does mitosis properly occur before or after the interphase? Is it a mere "point of view" issue? Mitosis must be considered a succeeding phase after interphase since this

Explain about the phosphorus - macro minerals, Explain about the Phosphorus...

Explain about the Phosphorus - Macro Minerals? Phosphorus is the second most abundant element in the human body, comprising 30% of the total mineral content. An adult human bod

What is a stream, What is a stream? A stream is a incessant series of by...

What is a stream? A stream is a incessant series of bytes that flow into or out of your program. Input and output from devices like the mouse, , disk, keyboard, screen, modem, a

Write Your Message!

Captcha
Free Assignment Quote

Assured A++ Grade

Get guaranteed satisfaction & time on delivery in every assignment order you paid with us! We ensure premium quality solution document along with free turntin report!

All rights reserved! Copyrights ©2019-2020 ExpertsMind IT Educational Pvt Ltd