Disaccharide
What are disaccharides? How will you identify them in the laboratory? What is the normal level of glucose in the blood?
Answer:
Disaccharides:
- Disaccharides are oligosaccharides containing two monosaccharide units held together by a glycosidic bond.
Properties:
- Sweet to taste
- Crystalline in nature.
- Water soluble.
“Understanding disaccharides through FAQs: Structure, types, and uses explained”
Types:
1. Reducing disaccharides
- Contains free aldehyde or keto group.
- Example: Maltose, lactose.
What is a disaccharide
2. Non-reducing disaccharides.
- They don’t contain any free aldehyde/keto group.
- Examples: sucrose, trehalose.
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Laboratory tests for disaccharides:
1. Molisch test:
- It is a general test for the detection of carbohydrates
- The strong H2SO3 hydrolyses disaccharides to liberate monosaccharides.
- The monosaccharides get dehydrated to form furfural or hydroxyl methyl furfural which condenses with a-naphthol to form a violet-colored complex.
2. Benedict’s test:
- This is a test for the identification of reducing sugars that form enediols.
- The enediol forms of sugar reduce cupric ions of a yellow precipitate of cuprous hydroxide or a red precipitate of cuprous oxide.
3. Barfoed’s test:
- It is used to distinguish between monosaccharides and disaccharides.
- Strong reducing sugars like monosaccharide give this test positive.
“Common challenges in mastering disaccharide notes effectively: FAQs provided”
4. Osazone test:
- Phenylhydrazine in acetic acid, when boiled with reducing sugars forms osazones.
- The first two carbons are involved in this reaction.
- The sugars that differ in their configuration on these carbons give the same type of osazones.
- Maltose gives sunflower-shaped osazones while lactose powder – puff shaped.
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5. Sucrose hydrolysis test:
- Sucrose can be hydrolyzed by concentrated ITCl, to be converted to glucose and fructose.
- These are then reduced by Benedict’s test.
Normal blood glucose level:
- Glucose – 70 – 100 mg/dl [Normal fasting level]
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