disaccharide

(noun)

A sugar, such as sucrose, maltose, or lactose, consisting of two monosaccharides combined together.

Related Terms

  • glycogen
  • monosaccharide

Examples of disaccharide in the following topics:

  • Disaccharides

    • Four examples of disaccharides composed of two glucose units are shown in the following diagram.
    • Acid-catalyzed hydrolysis of these disaccharides yields glucose as the only product.
    • Trehalose, a disaccharide found in certain mushrooms, is a bis-acetal, and is therefore a non-reducing sugar.
    • Disaccharides made up of other sugars are known, but glucose is often one of the components.
    • Two important examples of such mixed disaccharides will be displayed in the second diagram above.
  • Carbohydrate Molecules

    • Carbohydrates are classified into three subtypes: monosaccharides, disaccharides, and polysaccharides.
    • Common disaccharides include lactose, maltose, and sucrose.
    • Lactose is a disaccharide consisting of the monomers glucose and galactose.
    • Maltose, or malt sugar, is a disaccharide formed by a dehydration reaction between two glucose molecules.
    • The most common disaccharide is sucrose, or table sugar, which is composed of the monomers glucose and fructose.
  • Chemical Digestion of Carbohydrates, Proteins, Lipids, and Nucleic Acids

    • Sucrase is an enzyme that breaks down disaccharide sucrose, commonly known as table sugar, cane sugar, or beet sugar.
    • Lactase is an enzyme that breaks down the disaccharide lactose into its component parts, glucose and galactose, which can also be absorbed by the small intestine.
  • Types of Biological Macromolecules

    • Regular table sugar is the disaccharide sucrose (a polymer), which is composed of the monosaccharides fructose and glucose (which are monomers).
    • The carbohydrate monosaccharides (fructose and glucose) are joined to make the disaccharide sucrose.
  • Importance of Carbohydrates

    • One major class of biological macromolecules are carbohydrates, which are further divided into three subtypes: monosaccharides, disaccharides, and polysaccharides .
    • Carbohydrates are biological macromolecules that are further divided into three subtypes: monosaccharides, disaccharides, and polysaccharides.
  • The Cell Wall of Bacteria

    • Peptidoglycan is a huge polymer of disaccharides (glycan) cross-linked by short chains of identical amino acids (peptides) monomers.
  • Mechanisms of Chemical Digestion

    • Carbohydrates are taken in mainly in the form of plant carbohydrate (amylose) and animal carbohydrate (glycogen) together with some sugars, mainly disaccharides.
    • This breaks amylose down into mainly disaccharides, and glycogen with its 1:6 linkages into polysaccharides .
    • The net result of these actions are numerous disaccharides and polysaccharides.
  • Digestion and Absorption

    • The salivary enzyme amylase begins the breakdown of food starches into maltose, a disaccharide.
    • Pancreatic juices also contain amylase, which continues the breakdown of starch and glycogen into maltose and other disaccharides.
    • These disaccharides are then broken down into monosaccharides by enzymes called maltases, sucrases, and lactases.
  • Carbohydrates: Sources, Uses in the Body, and Dietary Requirements

    • Many organisms also have the ability to metabolize other monosaccharides and disaccharides, though glucose is preferred.
  • Absorption and Feces Formation in the Large Intestine

    • In humans, these include most complex saccharides (at most, three disaccharides are digestible by humans).
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