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Fischer projection
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Diagram showing Fischer projections of D-glucose and L-glucose, with each molecule's carbon backbone, hydroxyl groups, and aldehyde group arranged to highlight their mirror-image configurations. representations of molecular structure
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Diagram showing Fischer projections of D-glucose and L-glucose, with each molecule's carbon backbone, hydroxyl groups, and aldehyde group arranged to highlight their mirror-image configurations.
Fischer projections of D-glucose and L-glucose A Fischer projection diagram illustrating the mirror-image enantiomers D-glucose and L-glucose, highlighting their chiral carbon backbones, hydroxyl groups, and aldehyde configurations.

Fischer projection

chemistry
Also known as: projection formula
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History

Fischer projection, method of representing the three-dimensional structures of molecules on a page, devised by Emil Fischer. By convention, horizontal lines represent bonds projecting from the plane of the paper toward the viewer, and vertical lines represent bonds projecting away from the viewer. Fischer projections are a convenient way to depict chiral molecules (see optical activity) and distinguish between pairs of enantiomers (see racemic mixture). They are most often used to depict isomers of the sugars. See also chemical formula.

The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica This article was most recently revised and updated by Rick Livingston.