| Monosaccharides |
Simplest carbohydrates with one sugar unit |
Glucose, Fructose, Galactose |
| Disaccharides |
Composed of two monosaccharide units linked together |
Sucrose (Glucose + Fructose), Lactose (Glucose + Galactose), Maltose (Glucose + Glucose) |
| Oligosaccharides |
Contain a small number (3 to 10) of monosaccharide units linked together |
Components of glycoproteins and glycolipids |
| Polysaccharides |
Large, complex carbohydrates composed of numerous monosaccharide units |
Starch (in plants), Glycogen (in animals), Cellulose (in plant cell walls), Chitin (in exoskeletons and fungal cell walls) |
| Hexoses |
Monosaccharides with six carbon atoms |
Glucose, Fructose, Galactose |
| Pentoses |
Monosaccharides with five carbon atoms |
Ribose, Deoxyribose (found in nucleic acids) |
| Trioses |
Monosaccharides with three carbon atoms |
Glyceraldehyde |
