Name each of the following aldohexoses: C H OH HO H H OH H

Step 1 of 5

There is no systematic way of naming simple monosaccharides such as this, other than to assign them a D or L configuration.

The base name must simply be memorized, based on the arrangement of hydroxyl groups. Recall that to determine if a sugar is D or L, we need to look at the chiral carbon furthest from the carbonyl group (when drawn in a Fischer projection). If the hydroxyl group is pointing to the right, then it is a D sugar; if the hydroxyl group is pointing to the left, then it is an L sugar.

With these guidelines in place, we can begin to examine the structures we have been given.