Carbohydrate Digestion Glucose Model

A carbohydrate, also called a starch, is a long string of glucose and/or other simple sugar molecules chemically bonded together. A carbohydrate is an organic compound and is found in many of our foods. Potatoes, rice, pasta, corn and breads contain large amounts of starch. Our bodies cannot absorb these large compounds so our digestive system breaks them up into smaller molecules.

amylase The breakdown of carbohydrates begins with the saliva in the mouth. Our saliva contains an enzyme called amylase that begins to break the chemical bonds holding the large carbohydrate molecules together. The amylase works somewhat like a pair of scissors breaking the bonds between each simple sugar.

Once carbohydrate digestion is complete, single molecules of glucose are left. Glucose is a small enough molecule to be absorbed by the small intestine. Once it is absorbed, insulin from the pancreas picks it up and carries it to all of the cells in your body.

The mitochondria in each cell break the glucose apart to release energy. The process in which glucose is broken down is called cellular respiration. Both autotrophs and heterotrophs perform respiration. When glucose is broken down, chemical and thermal energy is produced.

Glucose has a chemical formula of: C6H12O6 That means glucose is made of 6 carbon atoms, 12 hydrogen atoms and 6 oxygen atoms.

glucose model You will be building one type of sugar called glucose. Glucose is produced during photosynthesis and acts as the fuel for many organisms. Materials 12 white marshmallows 6 green marshmallows 6 pink marshmallows 25 toothpicks

Procedure For the model, pink is oxygen, green is carbon and white is hydrogen. The brown lines represent the toothpicks which show chemical bonds. Keep in mind that chemical bonds are forces and not physical connections.

Procedure Use the pink marshmallows to represent the oxygen (O) atoms and the green marshmallows to represent carbon (C) atoms. Build a ring like structure using 6 toothpicks, 5 carbon marshmallows, and 1 oxygen marshmallows.

Procedure Add the sixth carbon (green) to the carbon that is next to the oxygen atom.

Procedure 3. To each of the remaining carbon atoms, attach an oxygen atom (pink).

Procedure 4. Using white for hydrogen attach them each place that it is shown in the diagram.

Procedure 5. Write everyone in the group’s name on a piece of paper using a marker. Place this on the table and put the glucose model on it. Use the camera to take a picture of your model.

Once instructed, have one person from the group bring the model to the front of the room. Stand shoulder to shoulder with the other students holding a glucose model. The chain of glucose models represents a carbohydrate.   Another student will hold the amylase scissors and will go one by one down the chain breaking the chemical bond between the glucose molecules.

8. One at a time, each student will break away from the chain 8. One at a time, each student will break away from the chain. What does this represent?