Abstract
Glucose is an important metabolite for all living cells and with other simple sugars and related molecules derived from these sugars it provides sources of readily available energy for cells. Sugars also provide basic carbon skeletons for the biosynthesis of other macromolecules. These include proteins, lipids, nucleic acids, and complex storage polysaccharides (glycogen). Furthermore, hexose sugars are building blocks of glycoproteins such as cartilage-specific proteoglycans. In addition to their role as structural components of the cartilage ECM (Fig. 4), proteoglycans also fulfil adhesive and informational functions. © 2008 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.