Which term refers to the strong stems and roots built from a plant's structural carbohydrate?

Which term refers to the strong stems and roots built from a plant's structural carbohydrate?

• A. Starch
• B. Glucose
• C. Cellulose
• D. Lipid

Answer: (C)

Cellulose is the plant’s structural carbohydrate that builds strong stems and roots. It forms the rigid framework of plant cell walls, with long chains of glucose units linked by beta-1,4 bonds that stack into tough microfibrils. This arrangement gives plants their stiffness and resistance, which supports upright stems and robust roots. Starch, by contrast, is an energy storage polymer with mostly alpha linkages that plants use for reserve calories, not structure. Glucose is just the single sugar unit, not a polymer. Lipids are fats and oils involved in energy storage and membrane structure, not the structural carbohydrate in plant stems. So cellulose best fits the description of the strong, structural material in plants.

Cellulose is the plant’s structural carbohydrate that builds strong stems and roots. It forms the rigid framework of plant cell walls, with long chains of glucose units linked by beta-1,4 bonds that stack into tough microfibrils. This arrangement gives plants their stiffness and resistance, which supports upright stems and robust roots. Starch, by contrast, is an energy storage polymer with mostly alpha linkages that plants use for reserve calories, not structure. Glucose is just the single sugar unit, not a polymer. Lipids are fats and oils involved in energy storage and membrane structure, not the structural carbohydrate in plant stems. So cellulose best fits the description of the strong, structural material in plants.