Final answer:
The two types of beta-glucose polymers are storage polysaccharides like starch and glycogen, and structural polysaccharides like cellulose and chitin. Storage polysaccharides store energy, while structural ones give cells their shape and strength.
Step-by-step explanation:
The two types of beta-glucose polymers are structural polysaccharides and storage polysaccharides. The primary examples of storage polysaccharides are starch and glycogen, both of which are made up of branched chains of glucose molecules.
Starch is found primarily in plants, while glycogen is found in animals, where they serve the purpose of energy storage. On the other hand, the classic example of a structural polysaccharide is cellulose, which consists of beta-glucose units linked together to form fibers that give plants their structure.
Modified beta-glucose molecules can also form other important structural polymers like chitin, which is a polymer of N-acetyl glucosamine (NAG) and is found in the exoskeletons of insects and the cell walls of fungi. In bacteria, the cell wall peptidoglycan contains the modified glucose units N-acetyl glucosamine and N-acetyl muramic acid (NAM), which contribute to its rigid structure and functioning.