In human body, excess glucose is stored in which of the following forms?

Appeared in: UPPSC 2017

Explanation

Glycogen is the primary storage form of glucose in animals, including humans.
It is a large, branched polysaccharide stored mainly in the liver and skeletal muscles.
The process of converting glucose to glycogen is called glycogenesis, which helps regulate blood sugar levels after a meal.
Liver glycogen is used to maintain blood glucose homeostasis, while muscle glycogen provides a local energy source for muscle contraction.

Option A: Starch is the energy storage polysaccharide in plants, not humans. Humans digest starch into glucose but do not store it in this form.
Option B: Glucosamine is an amino sugar that functions as a building block for macromolecules like glycoproteins and glycosaminoglycans, which are structural components of cartilage and connective tissue. It is not used for energy storage.
Option D: This option is incorrect because a correct answer, Glycogen, is listed among the choices.

Clinical Relevance

Nursing practice connection: Knowing Carbohydrate Metabolism and Storage helps nurses interpret findings accurately and avoid errors in routine assessment, medication administration, and patient teaching.
Understanding glycogen metabolism is crucial for managing diabetes. In diabetic patients, the regulation of glycogen synthesis and breakdown is impaired, leading to fluctuations in blood glucose.
Glycogen Storage Diseases (GSDs) are a group of genetic disorders where there is a defect in an enzyme involved in glycogen synthesis or breakdown, leading to abnormal amounts or types of glycogen in tissues.
What if? If a patient has liver disease, their ability to store glycogen and maintain blood glucose levels can be severely compromised, increasing the risk of hypoglycemia (low blood sugar), especially during fasting.

How to Approach the Question

First, identify the key terms in the question: 'excess glucose', 'stored', and 'human body'. This directs you to think about how carbohydrates are managed in animal physiology.
Recall the major forms of carbohydrate storage. You should remember that plants use starch and animals use glycogen.
Evaluate the given options based on this knowledge.
Option A, Starch, is the plant storage form, so it's incorrect for the human body.
Option B, Glucosamine, is a structural molecule, not a storage molecule.
Option C, Glycogen, is the known storage form of glucose in animals/humans. This is the correct answer.

Concept Tested & Keywords

QANaWgwfDQLq_6TNnaCvQa

E6 textbook of Applied Biochemistry and Nutrition & DieteticsHarbans Lal (pp 26-464 of 479) p. 18-20

E6 Textbook of Biochemistry for medical StudentsDM Vasudevan Part 1 (pp 26-370 of 370) p. 157-159

E6 Harper's Illustrated Biochemistry2023 (pp 26-793 of 813) p. 156-158

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