maltose

American  

[mawl-tohs] / ˈmɔl toʊs /

noun

Chemistry.

1. a white, crystalline, water-soluble sugar, C 1 2 H 2 2 O 1 1 ⋅H 2 O, formed by the action of diastase, especially from malt, on starch: used chiefly as a nutrient, as a sweetener, and in culture media.

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maltose British  

/ ˈmɔːltəʊz /

noun

1. a disaccharide of glucose formed by the enzymic hydrolysis of starch: used in bacteriological culture media and as a nutrient in infant feeding. Formula: C 12 H 22 O 11

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maltose Scientific  

/ môl′tōs′ /

1. A sugar made by the action of various enzymes on starch. It is formed in the body during digestion. Maltose is a disaccharide consisting of two linked glucose molecules. Chemical formula: C ₁₂ H ₂₂ O ₁₁ .

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Etymology

Origin of maltose

First recorded in 1860–65; malt + -ose ²

Explanation

Maltose is a sugar that forms when starches like potatoes or rice are broken down in the digestive system. After maltose is formed, it's broken into simpler sugars so your body can use it for energy. Most foods you eat don't have much maltose, unless you cook them. Sweet potatoes, for example, have no maltose when they're raw, but when they're cooked they have a small amount. Molasses and malted drinks like Ovaltine are some of the few uncooked food products that contain maltose. Otherwise, it forms during the digestive process. Maltose comes from malt and the chemical sugar suffix -ose.

Example Sentences

Maltose, which is found in breakfast cereals and breads, is a disaccharide of two glucose molecules.

From Salon • Mar. 28, 2024

Maltose, or malt sugar, is a disaccharide formed by a dehydration reaction between two glucose molecules.

From Textbooks • Jun. 9, 2022

Maltose, or malt sugar, is a disaccharide formed from a dehydration reaction between two glucose molecules.

From Textbooks • Apr. 25, 2013

Maltose, isomaltose, gentiobiose, and cellobiose, are all glucose-glucosides, the difference between them being undoubtedly due to linkage being between different alcoholic groups in the glucose molecules.

From The Chemistry of Plant Life by Thatcher, Roscoe Wilfred

It is a mixture of three derivatives of starch in about this proportion: Maltose 45 per cent.

From Creative Chemistry Descriptive of Recent Achievements in the Chemical Industries by Slosson, Edwin E.

Related Words

• cellulose
• glucose
• lactose
• starch
• sugar