Maltose

A reducing disaccharide containing two glucose units linked alpha(1→4).

Formula
C12H22O11
Molar mass
342.3 g/mol
Also known as
(2R,3S,4S,5R,6R)-2-(hydroxymethyl)-6-[(2R,3S,4R,5R)-4,5,6-trihydroxy-2-(hydroxymethyl)oxan-3-yl]oxyoxane-3,4,5-triol, D-(+)-Maltose, Maltobiose, Cextromaltose, Malt sugar, Advanctose 100, Finetose

Overview

A reducing disaccharide containing two glucose units linked alpha(1→4).

One glucose anomeric centre forms the glycosidic bond while the other remains free. The free end accounts for reducing behaviour and anomeric interconversion. Hydrolysis produces glucose; the linkage type, not just the identities of the monomers, matters when comparing carbohydrates.

Identifiers

Formula
C12H22O11
Molar mass
342.3 g/mol
Also known as
(2R,3S,4S,5R,6R)-2-(hydroxymethyl)-6-[(2R,3S,4R,5R)-4,5,6-trihydroxy-2-(hydroxymethyl)oxan-3-yl]oxyoxane-3,4,5-triol, D-(+)-Maltose, Maltobiose, Cextromaltose, Malt sugar, Advanctose 100, Finetose
Chemical identifiers
SMILES
C([C@@H]1[C@H]([C@@H]([C@H]([C@H](O1)O[C@@H]2[C@H](OC([C@@H]([C@H]2O)O)O)CO)O)O)O)O
InChI
InChI=1S/C12H22O11/c13-1-3-5(15)6(16)9(19)12(22-3)23-10-4(2-14)21-11(20)8(18)7(10)17/h3-20H,1-2H2/t3-,4-,5-,6+,7-,8-,9-,10-,11?,12-/m1/s1
PubChem CID
439186
Data availability

Not published: Melting Point, Boiling Point, Density, Solubility.

References

  1. PubChem Compound Summary: Maltose (CID 439186)National Center for Biotechnology Information · PubChem

    Identity, molecular formula, molecular weight and aliases retrieved via PUG REST on 2026-09-08.

  2. OpenStax Organic Chemistry: DisaccharidesJohn McMurry · OpenStax · 2023

    Supports the qualitative structural interpretation of the recorded molecular structure; no new physical measurement or verified preparative yield is claimed.