Lactose

chemical compound

Lactose is a disaccharide that is made up of galactose and glucose molecules. Lactose makes up around 2-8% of the solids in milk. The name comes from the Latin word for milk, plus the -ose ending used to name sugars. Lactose is found in some milk products.

Lactose diagram

Digestion of lactose

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Infant mammals are fed on by milk from their mothers. To digest it, an enzyme called lactase cleaves the lactose into its two subunits glucose and galactose for absorption.

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