What is the Difference Between Glyceraldehyde and Glycerate

The key difference between glyceraldehyde and glycerate is that glyceraldehyde is a simple aldehyde compound and a sweet monosaccharide sugar, whereas glycerate is the conjugate base of glyceric acid and has a mild sweet taste.

Glyceraldehyde and glycerate are organic compounds that we can describe as sugar substances. Glyceraldehyde is a simple monosaccharide sugar while glycerate is a sugar acid anion. There are several important roles of glyceraldehyde, including the preparation of polyesters and adhesives, as a cellulose modifier, in the tanning of leather, etc. Glycerate, on the other hand, is important because, when consumed, it enters the mesophyll cells that use this substance as a source of 3-phosphoglyceric acid.

CONTENTS

1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What is Glyceraldehyde  
3. What is Glycerate
4. Glyceraldehyde vs Glycerate in Tabular Form
5. Summary – Glyceraldehyde vs Glycerate 

What is Glyceraldehyde?

Glyceraldehyde is an organic compound having the chemical formula C3H6O3. We can name it a triose monosaccharide. It is the simplest aldose compound among the series. This monosaccharide sugar is sweet-tasting, colourless, and exists as a solid crystalline substance. We can find it as an intermediate in carbohydrate metabolism. The term glyceraldehyde forms from the combination of two terms, “glycerol” and “aldehyde”. This is because glyceraldehyde is glycerol having one alcohol group oxidized to an aldehyde functional group.

Figure 01: The Chemical Structure of Glyceraldehyde

There is one chiral centre in this molecule. Therefore, it has two different enantiomers. These enantiomers have opposite optical rotation. The two enantiomers are named L-glyceraldehyde and D-glyceraldehyde.

This substance has many important roles, including the preparation of polyesters and adhesives, as a cellulose modifier, in the tanning of leather, etc.

What is Glycerate?

Glycerate is the conjugate base of glyceric acid. Glyceric acid is a natural compound having three carbon atoms as the backbone. It is a sugar acid. We can obtain this compound from glycerol. The removal of a proton forms a glycerate anion whose parent molecule is glyceric acid. The chemical formula of glycerate is C3H5O4–. Collectively, the salts and esters of glyceric acid are known as glycerates.

Figure 02: The Chemical Structure of Glyceric Acid Molecule, whose Conjugate Base is Glycerate

When we take glycerate through our food, glycerate enters the mesophyll cells that use this substance as a source of 3-phosphoglyceric acid. The 3-phosphoglyceric acid is important for biosynthetic processes. 3-phosphoglyceric acid is a precursor for serine, which creates cysteine and glycine via the homocysteine cycle.

What is the Difference Between Glyceraldehyde and Glycerate?

Glyceraldehyde and glycerate are organic compounds that we can describe as sugar substances. Glyceraldehyde is a simple monosaccharide sugar while glycerate is a sugar acid anion. The key difference between glyceraldehyde and glycerate is that glyceraldehyde is a simple aldehyde compound and a sweet monosaccharide sugar whereas glycerate is the conjugate base of glyceric acid having a mild sweet taste. Moreover, there are several important roles of glyceraldehyde, including the preparation of polyesters and adhesives, as a cellulose modifier, in the tanning of leather, etc. Glycerate, on the other hand, is important because, when consumed, it enters the mesophyll cells that use this substance as a source of 3-phosphoglyceric acid.

The below infographic presents the differences between glyceraldehyde and glycerate in tabular form for side by side comparison

Summary – Glyceraldehyde vs Glycerate

Glyceraldehyde is an organic compound having the chemical formula C3H6O3. Glycerate is the conjugate base of glyceric acid. The key difference between glyceraldehyde and glycerate is that glyceraldehyde is a simple aldehyde compound and a sweet monosaccharide sugar whereas glycerate is the conjugate base of glyceric acid having a mild sweet taste.

Reference:

1. “Glyceraldehyde.” An Overview | ScienceDirect Topics.

Image Courtesy:

1. “D-Glyceraldehyde 2D Fischer” By Master Uegly – Own work (Public Domain) via Commons Wikimedia
2. “Glyceric acid” By Edgar181 – Own work (Public Domain) via Commons Wikimedia

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