Fructose Sugar Molecule Chemical Structure

Fructose, also known as fruit sugar, is ingested by humans mainly as sucrose, a disaccharide that includes glucose. Its linear form, D-fructose, is a ketose sugar, based on the ketone functional group at carbon 2. Fructose forms beta-d-fructofuranose, a 5 membered ring where the carbon 5 alcohol bonds with carbon 2 to produce an ether functional group.

You can use our 3D Molecular Model Builder to illustrate fructose in its various forms. Choose the model style: "Orbit-flexible" & enter the structure you want to view/build. Simply enter D-fructose for the linear molecule or L-fructose for its optical isomer. View the various ring structures by entering beta-d-fructopyranose or alpha-d-fructopyranose o view 6 member rings; 5 beta-d-fructofuranose or alpha-d-fructofuranose for 5 member rings.

Fructose plays an important role in energy metabolism and cellular processes. It is naturally occurring in fruits, honey, and some vegetables & is available as an immediate energy source. Fructose is absorbed in the small intestine and transported to the liver where it is phosphorylated to fructose-1-phosphate & then converted to glyceraldehyde and dihydroxyacetone phosphate (DHAP) which are intermediates in the glycolysis & gluconeogenesis pathways.

Unlike glucose, fructose metabolism is insulin independent & useful as an energy source for diabetics. Fructose can also be converted into acetyl-CoA as a precursor for fatty acids as well as nucleic acid synthesis since ribose and deoxyribose are structurally related to fructose.