Oligosaccharides

An oligosaccharide (; ) is a saccharide polymer containing a small number (typically three to ten) of monosaccharides (simple sugars). Oligosaccharides can have many functions including cell recognition and cell adhesion.

thumb|Maltodextrin powder Maltodextrin is a name shared by two different families of chemicals. Both families are glucose polymers (also called dextrose polymers or dextrins), but have little chemical or nutritional similarity.

Acarbose (INN) is an anti-diabetic drug used to treat diabetes mellitus type 2 and (in some countries), prediabetes. It is sold in Europe and China as Glucobay (Bayer AG), in North America as Precose (Bayer Pharmaceuticals), and in Canada as Prandase (Bayer AG).

thumb|upright=2.0|Chemical structure of the three main types of cyclodextrins. Cyclodextrins are a family of cyclic oligosaccharides, consisting of a macrocyclic ring of glucose subunits joined by α-1,4 glycosidic bonds. Cyclodextrins are produced from starch by enzymatic conversion. They are used in food, pharmaceutical, drug delivery, and chemical industries, as well as agriculture and environmental engineering.

Sugammadex, sold under the brand name Bridion, is a medication for the reversal of neuromuscular blockade induced by rocuronium and vecuronium in general anaesthesia. It is the first selective relaxant binding agent (SRBA). It is marketed by Merck.

thumb|class=skin-invert-image|Fructooligosaccharide structure Fructooligosaccharides (FOS) also sometimes called oligofructose or oligofructan, are oligosaccharide fructans, used as an alternative sweetener. FOS exhibits sweetness levels between 30 and 50 percent of sugar in commercially prepared syrups. It occurs naturally, and its commercial use emerged in the 1980s in response to demand for healthier and calorie-reduced foods.

group of compounds

300px|right|thumb|The β-D-glucopyranosyl group which is obtained by the removal of the hemiacetal hydroxyl group (bottom right) from β-D-glucopyranose

Galactooligosaccharides (GOS), also known as oligogalactosyllactose, oligogalactose, oligolactose or transgalactooligosaccharides (TOS), belong to the group of prebiotics. Prebiotics are defined as non-digestible food ingredients that beneficially affect the host by stimulating the growth and/or activity of beneficial bacteria in the colon. GOS occurs in commercially available products such as food for both infants and adults.

Signaling molecule

Validamycin is an antibiotic and fungicide produced by Streptomyces hygroscopicus. An inhibitor of trehalase, validamycin is used for the control of sheath blight of rice and damping-off of cucumbers.

thumb|Molecular structure of an hypothetical xylooligosaccharide, where n is a variable number of xylose units such as xylobiose and xylotriose. Xylooligosaccharides (XOS) are polymers of the sugar xylose. They are produced from the xylan fraction in plant fiber. Their C5 (where C is a quantity of carbon atoms in each monomer) structure is fundamentally different from other prebiotics, which are based upon C6 sugars. Xylooligosaccharides have been commercially available since the 1980s, originally produced by Suntory in Japan. They have more recently become more widely available commercially,

2′-Fucosyllactose (2′-FL) is a fucosylated neutral trisaccharide composed of L-fucose, D-galactose, and D-glucose units. It is the most prevalent human milk oligosaccharide (HMO) naturally present in human breast milk, making up about 30% of all of HMOs. It was first discovered in the 1950s in human milk. The oligosaccharide's primary isolation technique has been in use since 1972.

α-Cyclodextrin (alpha-cyclodextrin), sometimes abbreviated as α-CD, is a hexasaccharide derived from glucose. It is related to the β- (beta) and γ- (gamma) cyclodextrins, which contain seven and eight glucose units, respectively. All cyclodextrins are white, water-soluble solids with minimal toxicity. Cyclodextrins tend to bind other molecules in their quasi-cylindrical, lipophilic interiors. The compound is of wide interest because it exhibits host–guest properties, forming inclusion compounds. This inclusion (and release) behavior leads to applications in medicine.

Isomaltooligosaccharide (IMO) is a mixture of short-chain carbohydrates which has a digestion-resistant property. IMO is found naturally in some foods, as well as being manufactured commercially. The raw material used for manufacturing IMO is starch, which is enzymatically converted into a mixture of isomaltooligosaccharides.