Quantitative Estimation of Mixtures of Sugars by the Paper Chromatogram Method

Abstract

Modern developments in the chemistry of the polysaccharides have served to increase the importance of the problems of identification and estimation of mixtures of sugars. In many cases the mixture of sugars resulting from hydrolysis of a polysaccharide is so complex as to render analysis by orthodox methods difficult. These have depended mainly on precipitation by a specific reagent and deal usually with quantities of the order of 200 mgm. of each individual sugar. There is an urgent need, therefore, for a method which would permit separation and facile estimation of complex mixtures, and would be capable of dealing with the very small quantities which are obtained in many biological studies.