What does hyaluronic acid do? 1. What is hyaluronic acid? Hyaluronic acid, also known as hyaluronic acid, hyal-means glass-like, bright and transparent, while uronic acid refers to uronic acid, which has nothing to do with uric acid. The molecular formula is (CHNO)ₙ, which is a disaccharide unit glycosaminoglycan composed of D-glucuronic acid and N-acetylglucosamine.