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Chime4 t1_j4pwvmm wrote

Reply to comment by SemanticTriangle in Living in a greener residential area increases the diversity of oligosaccharides in breastmilk. This in turn may affect the child’s health, as the oligosaccharides in breastmilk can protect the infant from harmful microbes and reduce the risk of developing allergies and diseases. by universityofturku

There are some we cannot metabolize and some we can. Oligosaccharides present in human milk have been found to promote helpful bacteria in the growing child’s gut by bypassing our primary digestion. Oligosaccharides are also used on the outside of cells for cell recognition. The combination of different sugar chains on the outside of cells attached to proteins (collectively glycoproteins) are what give one their blood type. A B AB O positive and negative blood types are descriptors of what types of Oligosaccharides are present or not present.

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YouAreGenuinelyDumb t1_j4qmp40 wrote

Yep. Just to add for those curious to look it up, the attachment of carbohydrates to proteins is (usually) called glycosylation, which is why they are called glycoproteins.

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