Desaccharification

Desaccharification is the removal or cleavage of disaccharide units from a molecule, or the hydrolysis of disaccharides into monosaccharides. It covers both enzymatic and chemical processes that break the glycosidic bond between two sugar units, whether within a larger carbohydrate or as an independent disaccharide.

Most common forms involve hydrolysis of glycosidic bonds, either by acid or by enzymes. Disaccharidases such as lactase, sucrase, and maltase catalyze the breakdown of lactose, sucrose, and maltose to their monosaccharide components (glucose, galactose, and fructose). Desaccharification can also mean removing a disaccharide moiety from a glycoside or polysaccharide, yielding a shorter molecule or an aglycone.

Applications include food processing and industrial bioconversion. Lactase is used to reduce lactose in dairy products, producing lactose-free items. In fermentation and biofuel production, released monosaccharides serve as substrates for microbes. In analytical chemistry, desaccharification is used to quantify carbohydrate content by hydrolyzing disaccharides and measuring the resulting monosaccharides.

Term usage varies: many scientists prefer disaccharide hydrolysis or desaccharidation, and desaccharification is encountered less often in current literature. Nevertheless, the concept is foundational to understanding how complex carbohydrates are broken down and how sugars are released for use in food, industry, and research.