AAMC FL Practice Exam

Oligosaccharides are primarily composed of short chains of three or more monosaccharides. They are carbohydrates that consist of a small number of sugar units—specifically, between three to ten monosaccharide units linked together by glycosidic bonds. This structure differentiates oligosaccharides from simpler sugars like monosaccharides, which are single sugar molecules, and from polysaccharides, which consist of longer chains of monosaccharide units. The unique composition of oligosaccharides allows them to play important roles in biological processes, including cell recognition and signaling.