What are Disaccharides?

Disaccharides are the carbohydrates that on hydrolysis carry two identical or disparate monosaccharides. Their general formula is C₁₂H₂₂O₁₁.  The consequential building blocks belonging to disaccharides are sucrose, maltose, and lactose. On hydrolysis with dilute acids or enzymes, these carry the following two molecules of monosaccharides.  

C₁₂H₂₂O₁₁ (sucrose) + H₂O ⭢ C₆H₁₂O₆ (glucose) + C₆H₁₂O₆ (fructose)

C₁₂H₂₂O₁₁ (Maltose) + H₂O ⭢ C₆H₁₂O₆ (glucose) + C₆H₁₂O₆ (glucose)

C₁₂H₂₂O₁₁ (Lactose) + H₂O ⭢ C₆H₁₂O₆ (glucose) + C₆H₁₂O₆ (Galactose)

The disaccharides are fashioned up of two molecules of monosaccharides associated with each other by the condensation reaction. The associating is crystallized exactly as hemiacetals react with alcohols to solidify acetal with the elimination of a water molecule.  

In a similar way, the hydroxyl groups of hemiacetals of two monosaccharides nits condense to form a disaccharide. The two monosaccharide units are linked to each other through an oxygen atom by a bond called glycosidic linkage.

A disaccharide is two monosaccharides united into one, as one might expect from the di- prefix, which means “two.” A disaccharide is formed when two monosaccharides combine in a chemical process known as dehydration synthesis, which results in the loss of a water molecule. The condensation reaction is another term for this phenomenon. The disaccharide sucrose is created when the monosaccharides fructose and glucose are combined.