Question

What chemical property of agarose contributes to its ability to trap large amount of water? And, what chemical property of glycosaminoglycans contributes to their role as lubricants?

Answer 1

Glycosaminoglycans are highly polar and attract water. They are therefore useful to the body as a lubricant. The repeating unit consists of an amino sugar along with a uronic sugar which creates a polar environment around itself. amino sugar containing NH₂ group and uronic sugar containing OH group leads to the polar nature of Glycosaminoglycans.

this is the repeating unit of agarose gel. Due to the formation of the microporous matrix, water molecules get trapped inside the matrix. moreover, methylation of OH group increases the degree of porosity which traps water with greater efficiency.