glucosio

Glucosio, known in English as glucose or dextrose, is a simple sugar and the most important monosaccharide in biology. It is an aldohexose with the chemical formula C6H12O6. Glucose exists in several stereoisomeric forms; D-glucose is the predominant isomer in nature. In aqueous solution it forms alpha and beta anomers through mutarotation and can exist as a linear open-chain or cyclic pyranose/furanose forms.

Glucose occurs widely in nature and is a primary product of photosynthesis in plants. It is a major energy source for living organisms and is found in many foods as free glucose or derived from starch and sucrose. Humans obtain glucose from diet and digest starch by amylolysis and disaccharide digestion.

After absorption in the small intestine, glucose circulates in the bloodstream and is taken up by cells via glucose transporters. It is metabolized through glycolysis and the later stages of cellular respiration to produce ATP. In liver and muscle, glucose can be stored as glycogen or released as needed by hormones such as insulin and glucagon.

Glucose has widespread industrial and medical uses. It is used as a sweetener and fermentation substrate, an intravenous fluid (dextrose), and a standard reference in laboratory analyses. Clinically, measurement of fasting glucose and oral glucose tolerance tests are used to assess metabolic health.

Names and synonyms: glucosio is the Italian term for glucose; other names include dextrose and grape sugar. Physicochemical properties include high solubility in water and reducing character, and the molecule exists in multiple stereochemical forms with extensive biological relevance.