galactose

American  

[guh-lak-tohs] / gəˈlæk toʊs /

noun

Chemistry.

1. a white, crystalline, water-soluble hexose sugar, C 6 H 12 O 6 , obtained in its dextrorotatory form from milk sugar by hydrolysis and in its levorotatory form from mucilages.

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galactose British  

/ -əʊs, ɡəˈlæktəʊz /

noun

1. a white water-soluble monosaccharide found in lactose. Formula: C 6 H 12 O 6

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galactose Scientific  

/ gə-lăk′tōs′ /

1. A monosaccharide commonly occurring in lactose and in certain pectins, gums, and mucilages. Chemical formula: C ₆ H ₁₂ O ₆ .

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Etymology

Origin of galactose

First recorded in 1865–70; galact- + -ose ²

Example Sentences

This enzyme enables the bacteria to generate galactose directly from glucose.

From Science Daily

Lactose, or milk sugar, is a disaccharide made of two simple sugars – glucose and galactose – in a 1:1 ratio.

From Salon

Following her illness, Mills was diagnosed with galactosaemia, a rare genetic disorder affecting up to one in 45,000 babies which prevents her body from turning galactose into glucose.

From BBC

All mammals, including humans, make milk with carbohydrates in the same unique form: lactose, a sugar that is a fusion of two other sugars called galactose and glucose.

From Salon

Yet Keasling claims his team is the first to develop a process that relies only on sugar—his yeast can make cannabinoids from galactose alone without requiring additional, more expensive ingredients.

From Scientific American

Related Words

• cellulose
• glucose
• lactose
• starch
• sugar