glicosidico

Glicosidico is an Italian adjective used in chemistry and biochemistry to describe phenomena related to glycosidic bonds and glycosides. It concerns the structure, formation, and reactions involving the linkage that connects a sugar moiety to another molecular fragment, which can be another carbohydrate or a non-sugar component.

A glycosidic bond is a covalent link formed by a condensation reaction between an anomeric carbon of a sugar and an oxygen or nitrogen atom of another group. Glycosidic bonds can be classified by the configuration at the anomeric carbon (alpha or beta) and by the participating carbon atoms (for example, 1→4 or 1→6 linkages in polysaccharides). These bonds determine the properties and digestibility of carbohydrates and related molecules.

In glycosides, the sugar part is the glycone and the non-sugar moiety is the aglycone. Hydrolysis of a glycoside yields a sugar and the aglycone. Enzymes such as glycosidases catalyze the cleavage of glycosidic bonds, while glycosyltransferases catalyze their formation. The glicosidico concept is central to carbohydrate chemistry, plant biochemistry, and pharmacology.

In biology and medicine, glycosides are widespread, including cardiac glycosides, flavonoid glycosides, and cyanogenic glycosides. The specific glycosidic linkage influences solubility, stability, enzymatic processing, and biological activity. The term glicosidico thus covers structural, enzymatic, and functional aspects of glycosidic linkages and their derivatives.