Carbohydrate Structure Determination

Present-day techniques for structure determination in carbohydrate chemistry are substantially the same as those for any other type of compound. The full range of modem instrumental methods, including mass spectrometry and infrared and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, is brought to bear on the problem. If the unknown substance is crystalline. X-ray diffraction can provide precise structural information that in the best cases is equivalent to taking a three-dimensional photograph of the molecule. 

Before the widespread availability of instrumental methods, the major approach to stmcture determination relied on a battery of chemical reactions and tests. The response of an unknown substance to various reagents and procedures provided a body of data from which the structure could be deduced. Some of these procedures are stiU used to supplement the information obtained by instrumental methods. To better understand the scope and limitations of these tests, a brief survey of the chemical reactions of carbohydrates is in order. In many cases these reactions are simply applications of chemistry you have already learned. Certain of the transformations, however, are unique to carbohydrates. 

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Duus J0, Gotfredsen CH, Bock K (2000) Carbohydrate Structural Determination by NMR Spectroscopy Modem Methods and Limitations. Chem Rev 100 4589 Agrawal PK, Pathak AK (1996) Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopic Approaches for the Determination of friterglycosidic Linkage and Sequence in Oligosaccharides. Phytochem Anal 7 113... 

Received December 2, 1971. Carbohydrate structural determinations reported from our department are supported by Research Grant GM-11293 from the U. S. Public Health Service, National Institute of Health. 

A. Dell, H. R. Morris, H. Egge, H. von Nicolai, and G. Strecker, Fast-atom-bombardment mass spectrometry for carbohydrate structure determination, Carbohydr. Res., 115 (1983) 41-52. 

J. 0. Duus, C. H. Gottfredsen, and K. Bock, Carbohydrate structural determination by NMR spectroscopy modem methods and limitations, Chem. Rev., (2000) 4589-4614. This review has extensive tabulations of reviews related to NMR of carbohydrates, characteristic NMR features, and chemical shift collections in addition to 355 references. 

Duus JO, Gotfredsen H, and Bock K (2000) Carbohydrate structural determination by NMR spectroscopy Modern methods and limitations. Chemical Reviews 100 4589-4614. 

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