Which product is most directly produced by amylase action on carbohydrates?

Which product is most directly produced by amylase action on carbohydrates?

• A. Fructose
• B. Galactose
• C. Maltose
• D. Glucose

Answer: (D)

Amylase works by cutting the alpha-1,4 glycosidic bonds in starch, breaking it down into smaller sugars. The immediate product of this enzymatic action is maltose, a disaccharide of two glucose units (with maltotriose also formed from some fragments). Glucose itself is not released directly by amylase; it appears only after maltose is further digested by maltase (a brush-border enzyme) and other dextrins are processed. Fructose and galactose aren’t direct products of amylase acting on starch either. So the sugar most directly produced by amylase action is maltose.

Amylase works by cutting the alpha-1,4 glycosidic bonds in starch, breaking it down into smaller sugars. The immediate product of this enzymatic action is maltose, a disaccharide of two glucose units (with maltotriose also formed from some fragments). Glucose itself is not released directly by amylase; it appears only after maltose is further digested by maltase (a brush-border enzyme) and other dextrins are processed. Fructose and galactose aren’t direct products of amylase acting on starch either. So the sugar most directly produced by amylase action is maltose.