An aldonic acid is any of a family of

sugar acid A Sugar acid or acidic sugar is a monosaccharide with a carboxyl group at one end or both ends of its chain. Main classes of sugar acids include: * Aldonic acids, in which the aldehyde group (−CHO) located at the initial end ( position 1) of an ...

s obtained by oxidation of the

aldehyde In organic chemistry, an aldehyde () is an organic compound containing a functional group with the structure . The functional group itself (without the "R" side chain) can be referred to as an aldehyde but can also be classified as a formyl grou ...

functional group In organic chemistry, a functional group is a substituent or moiety in a molecule that causes the molecule's characteristic chemical reactions. The same functional group will undergo the same or similar chemical reactions regardless of the rest ...

of an

aldose An aldose is a monosaccharide (a simple sugar) with a carbon backbone chain with a carbonyl group on the endmost carbon atom, making it an aldehyde, and hydroxyl groups connected to all the other carbon atoms. Aldoses can be distinguished from keto ...

to form a

carboxylic acid In organic chemistry, a carboxylic acid is an organic acid that contains a carboxyl group () attached to an R-group. The general formula of a carboxylic acid is or , with R referring to the alkyl, alkenyl, aryl, or other group. Carboxylic ...

functional group. Thus, their general chemical formula is HOOC-(CHOH)_n-CH₂OH. Oxidation of the terminal

hydroxyl In chemistry, a hydroxy or hydroxyl group is a functional group with the chemical formula and composed of one oxygen atom covalently bonded to one hydrogen atom. In organic chemistry, alcohols and carboxylic acids contain one or more hydroxy ...

group instead of the terminal aldehyde yields a

uronic acid 300px, The Fischer projections of glucose and glucuronic acid">glucose.html" ;"title="Fischer projections of glucose">Fischer projections of glucose and glucuronic acid. Glucose's terminal carbon's primary alcohol group has been oxidized to a ...

, while oxidation of both terminal ends yields an

aldaric acid Aldaric acids are a group of sugar acids, where the terminal hydroxyl and carbonyl groups of the sugars have been replaced by terminal carboxylic acids, and are characterised by the formula HOOC-(CHOH)n-COOH. Synthesis Aldaric acids are usuall ...

. Aldonic acids are typically prepared by oxidation of the sugar with

bromine Bromine is a chemical element with the symbol Br and atomic number 35. It is the third-lightest element in group 17 of the periodic table (halogens) and is a volatile red-brown liquid at room temperature that evaporates readily to form a simila ...

. They are generally found in their

lactone Lactones are cyclic carboxylic esters, containing a 1-oxacycloalkan-2-one structure (), or analogues having unsaturation or heteroatoms replacing one or more carbon atoms of the ring. Lactones are formed by intramolecular esterification of the co ...

form, with the ring structure essentially the same as in the original sugar's

cyclic Cycle, cycles, or cyclic may refer to: Anthropology and social sciences * Cyclic history, a theory of history * Cyclical theory, a theory of American political history associated with Arthur Schlesinger, Sr. * Social cycle, various cycles in soc ...

hemiacetal A hemiacetal or a hemiketal has the general formula R1R2C(OH)OR, where R1 or R2 is hydrogen or an organic substituent. They generally result from the addition of an alcohol to an aldehyde or a ketone, although the latter are sometimes called hemike ...

form, which is the form the sugar is usually found in. However, unlike hemiacetals, lactones do not have a

chiral Chirality is a property of asymmetry important in several branches of science. The word ''chirality'' is derived from the Greek (''kheir''), "hand", a familiar chiral object. An object or a system is ''chiral'' if it is distinguishable from ...

anomer In carbohydrate chemistry, a pair of anomers () is a pair of near-identical stereoisomers that differ at only the anomeric carbon, the carbon that bears the aldehyde or ketone functional group in the sugar's open-chain form. However, in order fo ...

ic carbon, and they cannot form

glycosidic A glycosidic bond or glycosidic linkage is a type of covalent bond that joins a carbohydrate (sugar) molecule to another group, which may or may not be another carbohydrate. A glycosidic bond is formed between the hemiacetal or hemiketal group ...

linkages. Aldonic acids are found in many biological systems, and are the products of the oxidation of

s by Benedict's or Fehling's reagents. Their lactones are key intermediates in the Kiliani-Fischer synthesis of sugars. Nomenclature of aldonic acids and their lactones is based on replacing the suffix "-ose" with "onic acid" or "onolactone" respectively; hence D-

glucose Glucose is a simple sugar with the molecular formula . Glucose is overall the most abundant monosaccharide, a subcategory of carbohydrates. Glucose is mainly made by plants and most algae during photosynthesis from water and carbon dioxide, using ...

is oxidized to D-

gluconic acid Gluconic acid is an organic compound with molecular formula C6H12O7 and condensed structural formula HOCH2(CHOH)4COOH. It is one of the 16 stereoisomers of 2,3,4,5,6-pentahydroxyhexanoic acid. In aqueous solution at neutral pH, gluconic acid fo ...

and D-

gluconolactone Glucono-delta-lactone (GDL), also known as gluconolactone, is a food additive with the E number, E-number E575 used as a sequestrant, an acidifier, or a Curing (food preservation), curing, pickling, or leavening agent. It is a lactone of D-gluconi ...

References

{{reflist Sugar acids