trehalose

T1R1E1H4A1L1O1S1E1
/ˈtɹiːhələʊz//ˈtɹiːələʊz/

noun

A disaccharide formed from two glucose units; it is an isomer of maltose.

UncommonScrabble 12

Meanings

nountrehalose (countable and uncountable, plural trehaloses)

plural trehaloses

  1. countableuncountablebiochemistryA disaccharide formed from two glucose units; it is an isomer of maltose.

    The researchers fed a natural sugar called trehalose to mice genetically engineered to have a severe version of Huntington's disease.

    2004 January 24, New Scientist, page 14
    3 more examples

    The most important of these is the common sugar furnished by the sugar cane, hence termed cane sugar, related to which are some others of small importance, viz., trehalose, melezitose, and melitose, represented by the general formula (C₁₂H₂₂O₁₁,xH₂O).

    1862, William Allen Miller, Elements of Chemistry: Theoretical and Practical, volume 3

    Major components of the polar lipids are the acylated trehaloses which differ considerably in their acylation patterns to trehalose and in fatty acid content.

    2013, Thomas M. Shinnick, Tuberculosis, page 14

    Two bacterial strains that have plagued hospitals around the country may have been at least partly fueled by a sugar additive in our food products, scientists say. Trehalose, a sugar that is added to a wide range of food products, could have allowed certain strains of Clostridium difficile to become far more virulent than they were before, a new study finds.

    2018 January 3, Amina Khan, “A popular sugar additive may have fueled the spread of not one but two superbugs”, in Los Angeles Times

    Synonyms: mycose, mycosin

Synonyms & antonyms

nounA disaccharide formed from two glucose units; it is an isomer of maltose.

Also see

Origin

Translations

Finnish trehaloosi, sienisokeri
  • trehaloosidisaccharide formed from two glucose units
  • sienisokeridisaccharide formed from two glucose units
French tréhalose
  • tréhalosedisaccharide formed from two glucose units
Hungarian trehalóz
  • trehalózdisaccharide formed from two glucose units
Italian trealosio
  • trealosiodisaccharide formed from two glucose units
Portuguese trealose
  • trealosedisaccharide formed from two glucose units
Spanish trehalosa
  • trehalosadisaccharide formed from two glucose units
Cite this entry
APA

trehalose. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/trehalose

MLA

“trehalose.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/trehalose. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “trehalose,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/trehalose.

Source: trehalose on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.