Details

Autor(en) / Beteiligte

• Prapulla, S.G.
• Subhaprada, V.
• Karanth, N.G.

Titel

Microbial production of oligosaccharides: A review

Ist Teil von

• Advances in Applied Microbiology, 2000, Vol.47, p.299-343

Ort / Verlag

United States: Elsevier Science & Technology

Erscheinungsjahr

2000

Quelle

MEDLINE

Beschreibungen/Notizen

• Oligosaccharides have emerged as functional foods with varied applications in response to an increasing consumer demand for healthier foods. The functional properties of oligosaccharides make them unique in food applications, and their popularity and demand is continually increasing. Oligosaccharides are classically defined as glycosides that contain between 3 and 10 sugar moieties. Food-grade oligosaccharides also include functionally similar disaccharides like lactulose. Oligosaccharides prepared for use in the food industry are not pure products, but are mixtures containing oligosaccharides with different degrees of oligomerization—the parent disaccharide and the monomer sugar. Food-grade oligosaccharides are subdivided into 12 groups. Microbial production of oligosaccharides is an effective alternative to chemical synthesis. Research efforts directed at production of novel oligosaccharides with varied functional properties will be a future trend. There is tremendous potential for broader elucidation of the physiological effects of oligosaccharides.