Catabolism
Catabolism is the metabolic reaction cells undergo in order to extract energy. There are two major metabolic pathways of monosaccharide catabolism: glycolysis and the citric acid cycle
In glycolysis, oligo/polysaccharides are cleaved first to smaller monosaccharides by enzymes called Glycoside hydrolases. The monosaccharide units can then enter into monosaccharide catabolism. In some cases, as with humans, not all carbohydrate types are usable as the digestive and metabolic enzymes necessary are not present. For instance, neither horses nor humans nor cats can digest and use cellulose, but ruminants and termites can.
Further Reading
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