D-(+)-Maltose monohydrate

White to off-white powder. Soluble in water (50mg/ml). Chemical. CAS: 6363-53-7. Formula: C12H22O11 . H2O. MW: 342.29 . 18.02. D-(+)-Maltose monohydrate is a component of starch and glycogen. It is a sugar composed of 2 alpha-D-glucose molecules coupled by an alpha(1->4) glycosidic bond. It is a reducing sugar with one anomeric carbon not linked in an anomeric bond. It contains a hemiacetal function and can mutarotate. Maltose is one product generated from starch and glycogen by the action of alpha-amylase. Maltose can be further hydrolyzed to glucose by the action of alpha-glucosidase (maltase), an enzyme commonly found in yeast and many other sources. It is called malt sugar when it is formed in fermenting grains during the production of alcoholic beverages. D-(+)-Maltose monohydrate is used as a sweetener with about one-third the sweetness of sucrose and as a nutrient in culture media. It is used in pharmaceutical formulations and as a parenteral supplement of sugar for diabetics. In addition it can be used in cell culture studies or may be employed as standard for the alpha-amylase and invertase assays.