Question

Write the structural formula of fructose. How is it different from the structure of glucose?

Hint:

Fructose and glucose differ in the functional groups they contain: glucose is an aldose, and fructose is a ketose.

Answer 1

The structural formula of fructose is: \[ \text{CH}_2\text{OH} - \text{C}(\text{OH}) - \text{C}(\text{OH}) - \text{C}(\text{O}) - \text{CH}_2\text{OH} \] Fructose is a monosaccharide and a ketose sugar, meaning it contains a ketone group at the second carbon atom. Glucose, on the other hand, is an aldose sugar, which means it contains an aldehyde group at the first carbon atom. Both sugars are isomers, but they differ in the functional group present and their structural configurations. While glucose forms a six-membered ring in its cyclic form, fructose forms a five-membered ring.