title: Disaccharide digestion and maldigestion.
abstract: All food carbohydrates are hydrolysed to monosaccharides before transport across the microvillus membrane. The digestion of disaccharides and some oligosaccharides is undertaken by a number of small intestinal brush border enzymes: sucrase-isomaltase, lactase phlorizinhydrolase, maltase-glycoamylase and trehalase. The distribution of the enzymes in the small intestine has been investigated. Different disaccharide maldigestion syndromes have been described. Lactase deficiency in adults is a condition found in the majority of inhabitants of the world. However, the prevalence varies widely between different populations. Sucrase-isomaltase deficiency is a very rare congenital condition except in Greenland. Trehalose maldigestion is likewise rare outside Greenland. Different hypotheses regarding the molecular background of the maldigestion syndromes are discussed.
authors.affiliation: Dept. of Medical Gastroenterology F, Gentofte University Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark.
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Gudmand-Høyer
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Skovbjerg
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000413:Alaska / Q000453:epidemiology; D002170:Canada / Q000453:epidemiology; D002239:Carbohydrate Metabolism, Inborn Errors / Q000208:ethnology / Q000378:metabolism; D004186:Disaccharidases / Q000172:deficiency / Q000502:physiology*; D004187:Disaccharides / Q000493:pharmacokinetics*; D005060:Europe / Q000453:epidemiology; D006116:Greenland / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D007421:Intestine, Small / Q000648:ultrastructure; D004930:Inuit; D008286:Malabsorption Syndromes / Q000208:ethnology / Q000378:metabolism; D008871:Microvilli / Q000201:enzymology; D015995:Prevalence
chemical_list: D004187:Disaccharides; D004186:Disaccharidases