Apentix/AP Biology/Unit 1: Chemistry of Life/Question
AP Biologymediummcq1 pt

In the human small intestine, starch is digested all the way to glucose monomers. Which classification of this reaction, including the fate of water, is correct?

A.Hydrolysis: each glycosidic bond is split by water, whose H and OH rejoin the separated glucose units
B.Dehydration synthesis: water is removed so that new glycosidic bonds can form
C.Oxidation: water supplies oxygen atoms that oxidize each glucose unit
D.Condensation: water merely catalyzes the rearrangement without being consumed

Explanation

Core Concept

Digestion dismantles polymers by hydrolysis, the exact reverse of the dehydration synthesis that built them. Amylase and related enzymes position a water molecule at each alpha glycosidic linkage; the water is split so an OH group rejoins one glucose and an H rejoins the other, restoring free monomers. Every cleavage consumes exactly one water molecule, no electron transfer occurs, and the reaction is not a bond-forming condensation but its opposite.

Correct Answer

AHydrolysis: each glycosidic bond is split by water, whose H and OH rejoin the separated glucose units

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