Advances in Fractionation and Analysis of Milk Carbohydrates

Lactose is a principal component of the milk obtained from the mammals. Milk also con- tains several other sugars such as monosaccharides and oligosaccharides in low concentrations. Lactose has reactive functional groups and can be converted to valuable food-grade derivatives for commercial applications through chemical and/or enzymatic reactions. Physical and chemical properties of carbohydrates determine the methods that can be used for their fractionation and purification. In this chapter, the advanced extraction tech niques for fractionation and analytical methodologies applied for the determination of different carbohydrates of milk (lactose, lactulose, and oligosaccharides) are summarized. The main aim of this contribution is to provide the reader with a broad view on the recent fractionation and analytical techniques employed for the analysis of carbohydrates in dairy foods and their applications in food and pharmaceutical industry. different milk and milk products. A problem with studying car bohydrate bioactivities is the limited access to well-defined oligosaccharides. Purification of oligosaccharides from natural sources is laborious, and it is difficult to obtain preparation free of contaminants. In addition, the nonlinear nature of oligosaccharides creates a high structural diversity and their overall complexity makes it difficult for a single analytical method to charac terize them. Numerous health benefits of milk oligosaccharides and lactose derivatives are well established, including the pharmaceutical and food applications.