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Iron Sulfate's Reaction to Sugar

Iron sulfate and sugar are used together in microbiology, often in the field of enteric bacteria identification. Intestinal pathogens such as Salmonella and Shigella are commonly identified. Sugar sulfate and chondroitin sulfate are examples of sulfate reacting with various sugars in different environments. These forms are used in the field of pharmaceuticals and nutritional supplements.

  1. The Triple Sugar Iron Test

    • The triple iron sugar test uses a specialized agar, which acts a differential medium to various microorganisms. The medium contains lactose, sucrose and some glucose (sugars), ferrous (iron) sulfate and the pH indicator "phenol red." Different organisms turn the medium different colors, depending on which sugar they ferment. If the organism present can reduce sulfur, hydrogen sulfide gas is produced, which reacts with the iron component to form iron sulfide. Iron sulfide shows up as a distinctive black precipitate, as explained by Austin Community College.

    Chondroitin Sulfate

    • Chondroitin sulfate is a sulfated glycosaminoglycan made of sugar chains. Reacting chondroitin with iron sulfate in a biological setting produces chondroitin sulfate. With over 100 sugars in each chain, it forms an important structural component of cartilage and is used for dietary supplements which can encourage strong bones, according to researchers at Rice University. The sulfate portion of the molecule is covalently attached to the sugar portion, so the structure does not contain a sulfate counter-ion, as the name might suggest.

    Sugar Sulfate

    • Iron sulfate, a byproduct of steel milling, is granular, blue-green in color, dissolves in water to give a complex with octahedral molecular geometry, and is paramagnetic. "Sugar sulfate" is a chemical variant of iron sulfate produced in granular, crystalized or powered form. It is green-brown or yellow, hygroscopic, highly corrosive and contains 20 percent iron. Its production is not widely documented, but involves sulfating carbohydrates such as monosaccharide 6-deoxy-L-talose constituents, as described by leading researcher L. Lazar at Debrecen University in Hungary.

    Agricultural Significance

    • Ferrous sulfate solutions were applied to crop residues prior to planting to reduce iron deficiency chlorosis of the crops produced. The ferrous sulfate solutions were applied with additional sugar beet byproducts to find out if the reaction between the two enhances iron availability in the soil. Adding sugar beet did improve the soil availability of iron from the ferrous sulfate, as described by R. Jay Goos, et al. at North Dakota State University.

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